On Wednesday, September 23rd, a grand jury delivered their verdict on the death of 26-year-old Breonna Taylor — who was murdered in her home by plainclothes Louisville police officers on March 13th.
The jury determined that one of the former police officers involved in the raid of Breonna Taylor’s home, Detective Brett Hankison, would be charged on three counts of “wanton endangerment.” The two other officers involved in the murder of Taylor, John Mattingly and Myles Cosgrove, the latter who shot Taylor six times, faced no charges.
Following the verdict, mass protests swept the streets in Louisville, New York, Chicago, Milwaukee and smaller cities around the country. Musicians took to social media to share their heartbreak over the decision.
Cardi B, an outspoken observer of the Taylor case, who previously called on her male contemporaries to speak up about the tragedy, called the decision “so sad and discouraging”.
https://twitter.com/iamcardib/status/1308883166392971270
“This is a PRIME example of Rotten to the CORE!!!,” Alicia Keys tweeted. “UnJust!!!! Disrespectful and BLATANT DISREGARD!!!! Infuriated!!!!!!!”
This is is a PRIME example of Rotten to the CORE!!! UnJust!!!! Disrespectful and BLATANT DISREGARD!!!! Infuriated!!!!!!! https://t.co/TWVeV8Q3rp
Love Music?
Get your daily dose of metal, rock, indie, pop, and everything else in between.
— Alicia Keys (@aliciakeys) September 23, 2020
Snoop Dogg took to Instagram to decry the decision, “Breonna, I’m so sorry,” he posted. “So sorry that your neighbors’ walls received justice before you did.”
At a news conference on Wednesday, Kentucky’s attorney general, Daniel Cameron, expanded on the grand jury’s decision.
“The decision before my office is not to decide if the loss of Breonna Taylor’s life was a tragedy — the answer to that question is unequivocally yes,” he said.
“Justice is not often easy and does not fit the mold of public opinion. And it does not conform to shifting standards,” Mr. Cameron said.
