Ex-Cop in Breonna Taylor Case Sentenced to 33 Months, Mass Outcry Over DOJ Leniency
More than four years after Breonna Taylor was killed during a botched police raid in Louisville, Kentucky, the former officer who blindly fired 10 shots into her home has received a 33-month prison sentence—drawing outrage from her family and civil rights advocates.
Brett Hankison, a former Louisville Metro Police Department detective, was sentenced Monday in federal court after being found guilty in November of violating Taylor’s civil rights “under color of law.” His bullets did not strike Taylor but endangered lives by flying into a neighboring apartment.
DOJ Recommended Only One Day Behind Bars
The Department of Justice shocked many last week by recommending Hankison serve just a single day in prison, arguing that he posed no public threat. The DOJ questioned whether his actions even qualified as a seizure under the Fourth Amendment.
Probation officials had recommended 135 to 168 months. Ultimately, U.S. District Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings sentenced Hankison to 33 months in prison followed by three years of probation.
Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, said outside the courthouse, “There was no prosecution in there for Breonna. We got something… but it wasn’t fair.”
Protests Outside Court, Arrests Follow
Dozens protested outside the courthouse throughout the day. Among them was Taylor’s aunt, Bianca Austin, who was arrested on charges of disorderly conduct and obstructing a highway. According to police, Austin blocked traffic and confronted officers in an “unsafe” manner.
Austin remained in custody as of Monday night. The Louisville Police Department said it respected free speech but claimed the protest had crossed legal boundaries.
Civil Rights Lawyers Slam DOJ Leniency
In a statement, Taylor’s legal team called the DOJ’s recommendation an insult to civil rights and justice:
“It sends the unmistakable message that white officers can violate the civil rights of Black Americans with near-total impunity.”
They emphasized that the jury’s conviction should have been honored with a meaningful sentence—not undermined by a federal recommendation that felt like betrayal.
A Case That Still Reverberates
Though Taylor was killed by bullets fired by other officers—who claimed they were returning fire after her boyfriend Kenneth Walker shot once thinking intruders were entering—Hankison was the only officer federally convicted in connection with the raid.
The sentencing reignites the national debate about how police accountability and Black lives intersect in the U.S. justice system.
