Ex-Police Officer Sentenced 33 Months Over Breonna Taylor Rights Violation

Former Louisville police detective Brett Hankison was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for violating the civil rights of Breonna Taylor during a botched 2020 police raid that killed her. Despite the Justice Department's civil rights division head Harmeet Dhillon requesting leniency and suggesting a sentence of time served, Judge Rebecca Jennings, appointed by President Donald Trump, rejected this and imposed the prison term along with three years of supervised release. Hankison was found guilty of firing blindly into Taylor's apartment, endangering her and neighbors, though he did not directly cause her death. Taylor's killing, alongside other high-profile deaths like George Floyd's, sparked widespread protests against racial injustice and police brutality across the United States. The case highlighted ongoing debates over no-knock warrants and police reform, with Hankison being the only officer convicted in connection with the raid. The sentencing followed a four-hour hearing, reflecting the gravity of the case and its impact on public discourse around civil rights and law enforcement accountability.