Breonna Taylor Protesters File Police Brutality Lawsuit

A group of citizens have filed a class action lawsuit alleging police brutality at the hands of Louisville, Ky., authorities during protests over the death of Breonna Taylor.

The plaintiffs allege Louisville police officers used tear gas, flash bangs “and other forms of military-grade technology” in an attempt to quiet protesters who had legally gathered to seek justice for Breonna Taylor.

Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency room technician, was shot and killed March 13 by officers serving a no-knock search warrant, according to the New York Times.

Taylor and her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, had been in bed, but got up when they heard a banging at their door, the New York Times reported. Taylor’s boyfriend reportedly exchanged gunfire with police, and some of the three police officers’ bullets struck Taylor.

The police had been investigating men they believed to be selling drugs out of a nearby house, but had a warrant to search Taylor’s home because they believed one of the men was using her apartment as a place to receive packages, according to the New York Times. Walker’s attorney said no drugs were found in Taylor’s apartment.

The killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police officers in late May sparked outrage and protests against police brutality across the country. Among protesters’ demands came a renewed push for justice for Breonna Taylor.

Even Oprah Winfrey has spoken out about Taylor’s death, for the first time giving up the cover of O magazine to honor the slain woman and call for her killers to be held accountable.

But protesters say their calls for peace and justice were met with more violence — and more death — by law enforcement.

The class action lawsuit says Louisville police officers and National Guardsmen fired 18 rounds at Black restaurant owner David McAtee during a May 31 protest, killing him.

“Since then, countless peaceful protesters — including elected officials and local educators — have been shot, gassed, beaten, and arrested solely for making their voices heard,” the complaint says. 

The plaintiffs accuse Louisville police of abusing the city’s curfew order, saying officers forcibly arrested and dispersed people “hours before” the curfew order required protesters to clear the streets. 

“And to this day, both Louisville’s Mayor and Kentucky’s Governor have defended the police department’s conduct,” the class action lawsuit says.

Indeed, the officers who killed Taylor had not been arrested as of the filing of this class action lawsuit, and termination procedures have begun against just one of the three officers, the complaint says.

Large demonstrations against police brutality and Breonna Taylor’s killing began in Louisville the night of May 28, the day the police department released the audio of the 911 call placed by Walker the night she was killed, according to the class action lawsuit. 

About 11:15 p.m., a few protesters threw plastic water bottles at Louisville police officers, the complaint says. The officers — who had come to the protest equipped with riot gear — responded by firing pepper balls and live ammunition into the largely peaceful crowd; seven people were allegedly hit by live bullets.

Louisville officers then launched tear gas into the crowd, the plaintiffs say. 

According to the class action lawsuit, the police later claimed the gunshots and tear gas “were necessary to prevent assaults on officers.” No officers reported being injured during the protests.

Protests have continued despite the initial violence.

On May 29, plaintiff Attica Scott and her daughter attended a protest; both were demonstrating peacefully when they were shoved by police and hit with tear gas, the class action lawsuit alleges. Throughout the evening, officers continued to fire tear gas and flash grenades. 

Similar violence is alleged to have occurred on subsequent nights of protests.

The class action lawsuit also claims officers destroyed protesters’ stockpiles of water and milk they had planned to use as eye wash after being tear-gassed.

In addition, Louisville officers targeted journalists covering the protests, “firing pepper bullets at groups of reporters who were videotaping the scene,” the complaint says.

In mid-July, CBS News reported, 87 protesters were arrested and charged with felonies after marching to the home of Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron and refusing to leave his lawn.

“Rather than treating its peaceful protesters as important parts of the democratic process protected by the Constitution, the City of Louisville has chosen to forcibly silence them — often using military-type weapons and tactics that resemble those used by authoritarian regimes to stifle dissent,” the complaint says.

The class action lawsuit accuses the defendants of violating protesters’ First and Fourth Amendment rights, common law assault and common law battery.

The plaintiffs seek an order stopping the defendants from using “crowd control weaponry” on peaceful protesters; a requirement that the city restrict use of that weaponry to only situations in which an officer “faces an imminent risk of serious physical danger;” damages for loss of rights and physical and emotional injuries due to the defendants’ conduct; punitive damages; attorneys’ fees and costs; and any other relief deemed proper by the Court.

They also demand a jury trial.

Have you had a violent encounter with law enforcement while protesting? Tell us your story in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Ashok Chandran, Christopher Kemmitt, Ajmel Quereshi and Kristen Johnson of the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund Inc.; Corey Shapiro, Heather Gatnarek, Mashayla Hays and Aaron Tucek of the ACLU of Kentucky Foundation Inc.; and Earl S. Ward, O. Andrew F. Wilson, Samuel Shapiro and Andrew K. Jondahl of Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP. 

The Breonna Taylor Protest Police Brutality Lawsuit is Attica Scott, et al. v. Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government, et al., Case 3:20-mc-99999, in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky.

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