Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old African-American emergency-room technician, was fatally shot in her Louisville, Kentucky, apartment shortly after midnight on March 13, 2020. At least seven Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) officers forced entry into her apartment while executing a warrant connected to a narcotics investigation. Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, was inside with her; he said he did not hear the officers identify themselves and believed they were intruders. Walker fired one shot, which he described as a warning shot, striking Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly in the leg. Mattingly, Officer Myles Cosgrove, and Detective Brett Hankison returned fire, discharging 32 rounds combined. Cosgrove was determined to have fired the shot that killed Taylor, who was struck five or six times in a hallway. Hankison fired ten rounds from outside the apartment through a covered sliding glass door and window; none of his shots hit anyone inside, though bullets entered a neighboring occupied apartment.
The warrant named Taylor's apartment as a possible location for drugs or drug proceeds tied to a separate narcotics investigation into her former boyfriend. A U.S. postal inspector later stated that a claim in the supporting affidavit — that packages to Taylor's address were being monitored — had not occurred, prompting an internal LMPD investigation into how the warrant was obtained. According to police testimony to the grand jury, Taylor's apartment was never searched after the shooting.
Walker was charged with first-degree assault and attempted murder of a police officer; a judge dismissed the charges with prejudice in March 2021. LMPD fired Hankison in June 2020 for his use of force during the raid, and fired Cosgrove and Detective Joshua Jaynes, who had sought the warrant, in January 2021. In September 2020, the city of Louisville agreed to pay Taylor's family $12 million and to reform police practices, settling a wrongful-death lawsuit her family had filed in May 2020.
A state grand jury indicted Hankison in September 2020 on three counts of wanton endangerment for shots that entered a neighboring apartment; neither he nor the other two officers were indicted over Taylor's death. Some grand jurors later said the panel was not asked to consider homicide charges against the officers. A Kentucky jury acquitted Hankison of the endangerment charges in March 2022.
In August 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice charged Hankison with federal civil-rights violations and charged Jaynes, Sgt. Kyle Meany, and former Detective Kelly Goodlett with conspiracy and obstruction related to the warrant affidavit. Goodlett pleaded guilty later that month. Hankison's first federal trial ended in a mistrial in November 2023; a retrial concluded on November 1, 2024, when a jury found him guilty of depriving Taylor of her civil rights through excessive force, while acquitting him of a related charge involving her neighbors. In July 2025, he was sentenced to 33 months in prison and three years of supervised release; he was released from prison in December 2025 while his conviction is under appeal. Charges against Jaynes and Meany, narrowed by a 2024 court ruling, remained pending as of the most recent reporting.
Louisville Metro Police officers forced entry into Breonna Taylor's apartment while executing a warrant; Kenneth Walker fired one shot that struck Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly, and officers Mattingly, Myles Cosgrove, and Brett Hankison returned fire. Taylor was struck five or six times and died at the scene.
2020-05-15
Taylor's family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the officers involved and the city of Louisville.
2020-06-23
LMPD fired Officer Brett Hankison for violating use-of-force policy during the raid.
2020-09
The city of Louisville agreed to pay Taylor's family $12 million and to reform police practices, settling the wrongful-death lawsuit.
2020-09-23
A state grand jury indicted Hankison on three counts of wanton endangerment for shots that entered a neighboring apartment; no officer was indicted over Taylor's death.
2021-01-05
LMPD fired Officer Myles Cosgrove, who was determined to have fired the fatal shot, and Detective Joshua Jaynes, who had sought the search warrant.
2021-03-08
A judge dismissed the criminal charges against Kenneth Walker with prejudice.
2022-03-03
A Kentucky jury acquitted Hankison of the three wanton-endangerment charges.
2022-08-04
The U.S. Department of Justice announced federal charges against Hankison, Jaynes, Kyle Meany, and Kelly Goodlett related to the raid and the search-warrant affidavit.
2022-08-23
Goodlett pleaded guilty to a federal conspiracy charge related to obtaining the search warrant.
2023-11-16
Hankison's first federal trial ended in a mistrial after the jury could not reach a verdict.
2024-11-01
A federal jury found Hankison guilty of depriving Taylor of her civil rights through excessive force, while acquitting him of a related charge involving her neighbors.
2025-07-21
Hankison was sentenced to 33 months in prison and three years of supervised release.
2025-12
Hankison was released from prison after a federal appeals court allowed him to remain free while his conviction is under appeal.
Best coverage
Titles and descriptions are the creators’ own and may not reflect current legal status; see the dossier above for sourced case facts.
VIDEO
Dr. Todd Grande / 12 min
Legal Home Invasion? | Breonna Taylor Case Analysis
People
Joshua Jaynes
CHARGED
Former LMPD detective who sought the search warrant used in the raid; fired by LMPD in January 2021. Federally charged in August 2022 with conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and civil-rights violations related to the warrant affidavit; pleaded not guilty. A felony civil-rights charge against him was reduced to a misdemeanor in August 2024; other charges remained pending.
Kenneth Walker
CHARGED
Taylor's boyfriend; was present in the apartment during the raid and fired one shot, which he described as a warning shot fired at what he believed were intruders, striking Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly. Charged with first-degree assault and attempted murder of a police officer; the charges were dismissed with prejudice in March 2021.
Kyle Meany
CHARGED
LMPD sergeant federally charged in August 2022 with conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and civil-rights violations related to the search-warrant affidavit; pleaded not guilty. A felony civil-rights charge against him was reduced to a misdemeanor in August 2024; a false-statement charge remained pending.
Brett Hankison
CONVICTED
Former LMPD detective; fired ten shots through a covered window and sliding door during the raid, none of which struck anyone. A state grand jury indicted him on three counts of wanton endangerment involving a neighboring apartment, of which a Kentucky jury acquitted him in March 2022. A federal jury convicted him in November 2024 of depriving Taylor of her civil rights through excessive force; he was sentenced in July 2025 to 33 months in prison and released in December 2025 while the conviction is on appeal.
Kelly Goodlett
CONVICTED
Former LMPD detective involved in preparing the search-warrant affidavit for Taylor's apartment. Pleaded guilty in August 2022 to a federal conspiracy charge for lying on the warrant and creating a false report to cover it up.
Breonna Taylor
VICTIM
26-year-old emergency-room technician at University of Louisville Health; fatally shot in her apartment during the raid on March 13, 2020.
Jonathan Mattingly
LAW ENFORCEMENT
LMPD sergeant who was one of three officers to fire shots during the raid; was struck in the leg by Walker's shot. A state grand jury did not indict him over Taylor's death.
Myles Cosgrove
LAW ENFORCEMENT
LMPD officer determined to have fired the shot that killed Taylor; was not criminally charged over her death. Fired by LMPD in January 2021.
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Louisville emergency-room technician, was fatally shot by police executing a narcotics warrant at her apartment in March 2020; no one was charged over her death directly, though one officer was later convicted on federal civil-rights charges tied to the raid and others faced charges over the warrant.
Where did the killing happen?
Louisville, Kentucky.
Who was convicted?
Brett Hankison (Former LMPD detective; fired ten shots through a covered window and sliding door during the raid, none of which struck anyone. A state grand jury indicted him on three counts of wanton endangerment involving a neighboring apartment, of which a Kentucky jury acquitted him in March 2022. A federal jury convicted him in November 2024 of depriving Taylor of her civil rights through excessive force; he was sentenced in July 2025 to 33 months in prison and released in December 2025 while the conviction is on appeal.) and Kelly Goodlett (Former LMPD detective involved in preparing the search-warrant affidavit for Taylor's apartment. Pleaded guilty in August 2022 to a federal conspiracy charge for lying on the warrant and creating a false report to cover it up.).
