Two police officers were shot in downtown Louisville on Wednesday night amid protests over the death of Breonna Taylor, interim police chief Robert Schroeder said at a press conference. It’s unclear if the shooting was related to the protests — but it comes hours after the Kentucky attorney general announced that no officers were indicted for their role in the fatal police shooting of Black emergency medical worker Breonna Taylor.
At approximately 8:30, officers were called to respond to a large crowd and reports of shots fired, Schroeder said. While they were deploying, two police officers were shot.
Both officers are in stable condition, Schroeder said. One is alert, and the other is undergoing surgery. One suspect is in custody in connection with the shooting, and the FBI said it is assisting with the investigation.
Two officers shot amid Breonna Taylor protest…
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Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear released a statement in the aftermath of the shooting, urging protesters to remain peaceful and return home. “I’m asking everybody, please go home, go home tonight,” he said. “There will be many times over the coming days when there will be opportunities to be heard, and so many people are listening right now.”
President Trump also weighed in, tweeting his prayers to the wounded officers. “The Federal Government stands behind you and is ready to help,” he wrote. “Spoke to @GovAndyBeshear and we are prepared to work together, immediately upon request!”
Protesters took to the streets after Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said Wednesday that no officers would be charged in the death of Breonna Taylor. One former officer, Brett Hankison, was charged with wanton endangerment for shots fired into her neighbor’s apartment. The other two officers who opened fire in Taylor’s home, Detective Myles Cosgrove and Sergeant Jonathan Mattingly, were not charged.
At least 46 people have been arrested at the Louisville protests, police said.
On March 13, police raided Taylor’s home to search for illegal drugs. Cameron said that as Mattingly attempted to enter the apartment, Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired a shot that hit him, prompting the officers to return fire. Taylor was shot six times, but Cameron said conflicting ballistics reports made it difficult to determine who fired the fatal shot.
Ben Crump, an attorney representing Taylor’s family, decried the grand jury’s decision as “outrageous and offensive.”
“If Brett Hankison’s behavior was wanton endangerment to people in neighboring apartments, then it should have been wanton endangerment in Breonna Taylor’s apartment too,” Crump tweeted. “In fact, it should have been ruled wanton murder!”
A protester raises his hands in the air during a standoff with law enforcement on September 23, 2020 in Louisville, Kentucky.
Brandon Bell / Getty Images
Protesters began marching through Louisville soon after the attorney general’s announcement, chanting, “No justice, no peace.”
“We’ve been out here for 100-plus days, this is ridiculous, you know, it’s not fair. At the end of the day, how much is a Black woman’s life worth?” protester Carmen Jones told CBS News.
The Louisville demonstrators were joined by protesters across the country. Thousands gathered outside Barclays Center, according to CBS News York, and protesters in D.C. had a few small clashes with police.
Earlier in the day, Beshear authorized the deployment of 500 members of the Kentucky National Guard to Louisville. Mayor Greg Fischer announced a citywide curfew from 9 p.m. to 6:30 a.m., and said city buildings would be closed.
“I urge everyone to commit once again to a peaceful, lawful response like we’ve seen here for the majority of the past several months,” Fischer said.
Jericka Duncan, Zoe Christen Jones and Erin Donaghue contributed reporting.