Eighty-seven protesters were arrested and charged with a felony after gathering on the front lawn of Kentucky’s attorney general to demand justice for Breonna Taylor.
Protesters with the organization Until Freedom came together for a sit-in on the front yard of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s home.
The protests began Tuesday night near Ballard High School in Louisville, Kentucky, WLKY reported. The demonstrators marched from the school to Cameron’s residence, with many protesters sitting and standing on Cameron’s lawn while shouting slogans demanding justice for Taylor.
The police asked the protesters to leave, but many chose to stay. When the protesters refused to leave, the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) arrested them without incident.
“In total, 87 people were arrested,” LMPD said in its statement.
“Due to their refusal to leave the property and their attempts to influence the decision of the Attorney General with their actions, each person was charged with Intimidating a Participant in a Legal Process (Class D felony), Disorderly Conduct 2nd Degree (Class B misdemeanor), and Criminal Trespass 3rd Degree. (Violation),” the statement continued.
Houston Texans wide receiver Kenny Stills of the NFL and Porsha Williams of The Real Housewives of Atlanta were among those arrested.
Taylor, a 26-year-old black woman, was killed on March 13 when officers entered her home in search of illegal drugs. Officials claimed that the officers knocked on the door and presented themselves and only started shooting after Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, opened gunfire.
The shooting was the impetus for weeks of protests, policy changes — Louisville passed a ban on “no-knock” warrants, and a call for criminal charges upon the officers who shot Taylor.
None of the Louisville officers involved in Taylor’s shooting have been criminally charged. One officer, Brett Hankinson, was fired more than three months after Taylor’s death, and two other officers were placed on administrative leave.
Investigations into Taylor’s death are continuing. Cameron, a Republican and the state’s first black attorney general, said his office would “continue with a thorough and fair investigation” and said the protest would not deter “our pursuit of the truth.”
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