One day before the anniversary of the death of Breonna Taylor during the execution of a search warrant by the Louisville Police Department, her boyfriend has filed a federal lawsuit accusing the Louisville Police Department of excessive force and unlawful search in her death. Kenneth Walker filed the lawsuit in United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky on Friday, the Courier-Journal reported.
Walker also has a pending state lawsuit over the March 13, 2020, shooting. The federal lawsuit claims that Louisville police bear “direct responsibility” over Taylor’s death.
According to Walker’s lawsuit, the department’s practice of executing warrants “in the middle of the night,” coupled with inadequate training, creates a dangerous climate.
Louisville police obtained a “no knock” warrant from a judge based on a multi-month drug investigation that included an ex-boyfriend of Taylor. While the warrant gave the police permission to conduct a “no knock” warrant, witnesses and police say they knocked and announced their presence before entering the residence.
Walker and Taylor were standing in the hallway as police entered and Walker shot at officers, who returned fire and killed Taylor. At the scene, Walker told cops that it was Taylor who fired the gun. Evidence later revealed that it was indeed Walker that shot a Louisville police sergeant.
Prosecutors dropped all charges on Walker.
The investigation suggested that Taylor and her ex-boyfriend, Jamarcus Glover, were together in the same vehicle a month before her death. According to the evidence released by the Louisville Police Department, a pole camera showed Glover driving a car registered to Taylor on February 13th. He pulled up in front of a residence and went inside. A few minutes later, Taylor got out of the passenger side of the car, looked around for a few seconds, and then got back in the vehicle. Glover soon left the home, got back in the car, and drove off.
Louisville Police Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly was shot in the thigh by Walker, as police were making entry into their residence. He has filed a lawsuit against Walker alleging battery, assault and emotional distress.
