Justice for Breonna Taylor Act revived on Capitol Hill by bipartisan group of lawmakers

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Federal lawmakers plan to introduce a bill to ban no-knock search warrants nationwide.

The effort is in response to the police killing of Breonna Taylor. Rep. Morgan McGarvey, Sens. Rand Paul and Cory Booker, and Texas Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett will be joined by Taylor's mother, Tamika Palmer, as they reintroduce the Justice for Breonna Taylor Act.

The bill was first introduced in 2020. This will be the third effort to limit the controversial police tool on the federal level. The lawmakers describe no-knock warrants as intrusive, dangerous law enforcement tactics.

"The reality is these no-knock warrants don't keep people safe," McGarvey said.

Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Mary Shaw signed off on a no-knock warrant giving police permission to burst into Breonna Taylor's Louisville apartment in March 2020. Despite the warrant, the LMPD officers involved said they chose to knock and announce their presence that night.

Breonna Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, has testified he heard banging on the door -- but did not hear officers say they were police. As officers broke down the door, Walker fired one shot. He said he believed the couple was being robbed. That round struck LMPD Sgt. John Mattingly.

Police returned fire, and Taylor was killed.

A federal jury found Detective Brett Hankison guilty of violating Taylor's civil rights when he fired blindly into her apartment. He is currently serving a 33-month prison sentence. Three other officers face federal charges, accused of providing and lying about false information in the warrant police used to enter Taylor's home.

Following Taylor's death, prominent Louisville pastor and activist Rev. Timothy Findley with the Kingdom Fellowship Life Center has focused his efforts on police reform, although he's not optimistic this latest effort will be successful.

"It's good to try," Findley said. "I think it's good to put it out there, it's a moral obligation. But legislatively, I don't think we're in a political climate where there is really any appetite for police reform."

McGarvey said "sometimes things in Washington take time. We're continuing to build the right groups of people making sure that democrats and republicans, urban and rural legislators understand that this is something that can impact everybody."

The Louisville Metro Council banned no-knock warrants in Louisville in 2020 and the state legislature passed restrictions on their use in Kentucky in 2021.

"There's nothing good that comes from these kinds of police actions," Findley said. "Breonna Taylor would be here today if it were not for that warrant."

LMPD sent WDRB the following statement in response to the bill Monday:

"Louisville already has a local ordinance prohibiting the use of no-knock warrants, and LMPD has an established Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) regarding them. These measures have been in place for several years."

WDRB also reached out to Louisville's police union representative, but we're still awaiting comment.

A formal press conference to introduce the bill will be held in Washington, D.C. Wednesday.

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