Jefferson County’s top prosecutor is recusing himself from reviewing the conduct of Louisville Metro Police officers in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor, as national outrage over her slaying continues to swell.
What We Know:
- Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Wine ordinarily would have reviewed the internal investigation done by Louisville Metro Police’s Public Integrity Unit and weighed whether charges ought to be brought against the officers involved in the fatal shooting.
- In a letter requesting a special prosecutor review the PIU investigation of Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) officers, Wine’s office wrote that the case is “almost ready to be reviewed for criminal conduct by the officers”.
- Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear and S. Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., are among those calling for a federal investigation into Taylor’s death.
- Police have said an internal investigation is being conducted, but a federal investigation would instead assign that responsibility to investigators outside the city.
- Beshear called on attorneys at the local, state, and federal level to review the police internal investigation’s results to “ensure justice is done at a time when many are concerned that justice is not blind”.
- On Wednesday, Jefferson County commonwealth’s attorney Tom Wine recused himself from reviewing Louisville police officers’ conduct, citing conflict of interest, prosecuting Taylor’s boyfriend, Walker.
- A spokeswoman for Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron confirmed his office had been asked to serve as a special prosecutor.
Rising calls for a federal investigation into Taylor’s death have ramped up pressure on Louisville police in recent days, with more people across the country demanding answers about why police gunned down a decorated EMT in her own home.
