LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- As the nation awaits a decision in the Breonna Taylor investigation, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said he still is awaiting crucial information from the FBI.
Cameron was also a speaker at the Republican National Convention. He says, "My name is Daniel Cameron. I'm 34 years old and the first African-American Attorney General in Kentucky history."
During his speech, he also said Breonna Taylor's name.
"We Republicans do recognize those who work in good faith towards peace, justice and equality," he said. "In fact, it was General Dwight Eisenhower who said democracy is a system that recognizes the equality of humans before the law. Whether you are the family of Breonna Taylor or David Dorn, these are the ideals that will heal our nation's wounds."
On Wednesday afternoon, Tamika Palmer, the mother of Taylor, responded to Cameron's statement.
"It was nice to see him using a national platform to remind those watching the Republican convention of my daughter's name," Palmer said, in a written statement. "I hope the next time we see him he’s telling the country he's charging all officers responsible for my daughter’s death (or murder) and is committed to getting her overdue justice."
Kentucky took the spotlight Tuesday night with three speakers in the lineup at the GOP convention.
U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, Cameron and former Covington Catholic student Nicholas Sandmann were all scheduled to take the stage. The theme for the evening was "Land of Opportunity," with speakers planning to highlight Trump's policies on trade, abortion and the opioid crisis.
Nicholas Sandmann, Ky. U.S. Senator Rand Paul and Ky. Attorney General Daniel Cameron.
Cameron, 34, a protege of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, is the state's first African American AG and had been suggested as a possible heir apparent in the U.S. Senate.
After making history in last year's election, Cameron has followed a conservative course, defending abortion restrictions and speaking out against efforts to defund police departments. He has challenged coronavirus-related executive actions by Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear in a case to be heard by Kentucky's Supreme Court. And he faces what will likely be his biggest challenge as the AG with the investigation of the Breonna Taylor case.
Cameron must decide whether three Louisville police officers will be criminally charged for their actions in the March shooting death of Taylor. The 26-year-old Black emergency medical technician was killed when officers entered her apartment in south Louisville with a no-knock warrant during a drug investigation. No drugs were found, and Taylor's family has questioned the legitimacy of the warrant.
Since then, Taylor's name has been on the lips of demonstrators nationwide, and her death has become part of a national reckoning over racism and police brutality.
Cameron said on Fox News before the convention that he traveled to Washington, D.C., in part to meet with the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Speaking from Washington, D.C., Cameron addressed the investigation during remarks he made on Fox News before night two of the convention started.
"(We) obviously had good, constructive conversations there," he said. "We continue to await some key information from the FBI as it relates to a ballistics report. Once we get that, we'll be able to assess that information and then make conclusions from there."
The attorney general said that he will release the information to the public after his office has some time to analyze the FBI report. He met with Taylor's family two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, who is well known for speaking out about limiting the government and Constitutional liberties and fiscal responsibility, took the stage saying though he doesn't always agree with President Trump, he supports him and the work he's doing.
"To those of you who want lower taxes and better, less expensive healthcare, join me in supporting President Trump. To those of you who want to stand up and fight the socialists poisoning our schools and poisoning our cities, join me in supporting President Trump. Let's rebuild America together," he said.
Sandmann urged voters to reelect President Donald Trump.
Sandmann, who now identifies himself on Twitter as a spokesman for the Transylvania University College Republicans, tweeted that he couldn't express "enough about how excited I am to be apart of this years RNC!"
Sandmann was among the students from Covington Catholic High School in Park Hills, Kentucky, holding an anti-abortion march in Washington in January 2019. Footage of his confrontation with Nathan Phillips, who was participating in a separate demonstration supporting Native American rights, spread widely online.
Both Sandmann, who was wearing a red "Make America Great Again" cap, and Phillips later said they were trying to defuse tensions among three separate groups participating in both demonstrations. Video of the encounter showed Sandmann and Phillips standing very close to each other, with Sandmann staring, and at times smiling, at Phillips as Phillips sang and played a drum.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear questioned why the Taylor case is taking so long. On Monday, Cameron tweeted - "We continue to pursue the facts in this case through an independent and thorough investigation."
At RNC, Cameron also talked about being a black republican and his opposition to democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden. He says, "I think often about my ancestors who struggled for freedom. And as I think of those giants and their broad shoulders, I also think about Joe Biden, who says: If you aren't voting for me, "you ain't black."
Copyright 2020 WDRB Media. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All Rights Reserved.
