Former Kentucky police officer Brett Hankison has been convicted of using excessive force on Breonna Taylor when she died during a botched drug raid in 2020. A jury of six men and six women reached the verdict around 9:30 p.m. on Friday after deliberating for more than 20 hours over three days, the Associated Press reported. Hankison, one of the four officers who faced charges for Taylor’s death, becomes the first convicted officer who was involved in the raid.
“Breonna Taylor’s life mattered,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said, per The AP. “We hope the jury’s verdict recognizing this violation of Ms. Taylor’s civil and constitutional rights brings some small measure of comfort to her family and loved ones who have suffered so deeply from the tragic events of March 2020.”
Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, also expressed relief outside the federal courthouse after hearing the verdict.
“It took a lot of time. It took a lot of patience. It was hard,” Palmer said, The AP. “The jurors took their time to really understand that Breonna deserved justice.”