JCPS middle school principal among 87 protesters arrested at Kentucky attorney general's home

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Louisville middle school principal was among the 87 protesters who were arrested Tuesday during a demonstration at the home of Kentucky's attorney general.

Dr. Jeronda Majors, principal at Knight Middle School, was arrested on charges including criminal trespass, disorderly conduct and intimidating a participant in a legal process, which is a felony.

Jefferson County Public Schools spokeswoman Renee Murphy said the district was aware of the matter but declined to answer questions from WDRB News about whether Majors had been disciplined.

Majors was among protesters with the social justice organization Until Freedom who gathered Tuesday afternoon for a sit-in on the front lawn of the St. Matthews area home owned by Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron.

Attorney Lonita Baker, who is representing Majors, said the principal "has a lot of Black, brown and marginalized students in her school, and she maintains that she did this for them to show them that she is willing to step on the line for them and their rights."

Protesters demanded justice in the Breonna Taylor case. Taylor, a Black woman, was shot and killed by three white Louisville Metro Police officers on March 13 during a raid on her apartment. Taylor's death has sparked nationwide outrage and has prompted more than a month of protests in Louisville.

Agencies including Cameron’s office are investigating Taylor's death, but Cameron this week, despite mounting public pressure, again declined to say when the investigation might be completed.

In a statement Wednesday, Louisville Metro Police spokeswoman Jessie Halladay said officers initiated felony charges against the protesters at Cameron’s house in part because they chanted that "if they didn’t get what they want they would burn it down."

Majors was named principal of Knight Middle School in February. She started her career with the district and has remained for nearly 20 years, the district said in a news release in February. She got her undergraduate degree from Howard University, her master’s from the University of Kentucky and her doctorate in leadership education from Spalding University.

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