Louisville Police Declares State Of Emergency Ahead Of Breonna Taylor Verdict - Memorandum

Umer Jamshaid Published September 22, 2020 | 04:20 AM

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 22nd September, 2020) A state of emergency has been declared in Louisville, Kentucky, ahead of the state Attorney General's announcement expected this week in Breonna Taylor's case, Louisville Metro Police Department Chief Robert Schroeder said in a memorandum to police officers.

"In anticipation of Attorney General Cameron's announcement in the Breonna Taylor case, I am declaring a state of emergency for the Louisville Metro Police Department," Schroeder said in the memorandum on Monday.

Schroeder explained that the city's police department will immediately begin operating under emergency staffing levels and guidelines to prepare for any civil unrest that may unfold.

Media reported that the US district courthouse and a US Citizenship and Immigration Services field office in Louisville have been closed this week in anticipation of the state Attorney General's announcement in the findings of his office's probe into Taylor's death and a grand jury's decision on possible indictments for the three police officers who were allegedly involved.

Taylor was killed in her Louisville home in March when police officers executed a no-knock drug search warrant late at night. Taylor's boyfriend fired a first shot in self-defense fearing the entrants were burglars, which prompted the four police officers to unleash a hail of bullets on the house, hitting Taylor eight times.

The killing of the 26-year-old African American medical technician was initially overshadowed by the onset of the novel coronavirus pandemic that began to sweep the country around the same time. Activists, celebrities and demonstrators have since made it a point to keep her name in the news cycle and call for justice over her death. The officers have yet to face any legal repercussions over the killing.

Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer announced last week that the city will pay $12 million to Taylor's family as part of a settlement for her death.