The felony charges against 87 people who were arrested this week on the lawn of the Kentucky attorney general while protesting the response to Breonna Taylor’s death have been dropped, the top local prosecutor announced Friday.
The charge, which intimidated a participant in legal proceedings, was reasonable, Jefferson County District Attorney Mike O’Connell said in a statement. But “in the interest of justice and the promotion of the free exchange of ideas, we will dismiss that charge for each protester last Tuesday,” he said.
Protesters gathered in Louisville, Kentucky, to demand the arrest of three plainclothes officers involved in Taylor’s death on March 13. Taylor was shot dead when officers carried out a “do not touch” order at his Louisville home. Her boyfriend, who thought his apartment was being mugged, opened fire and wounded an officer. Taylor, 26, was shot eight times in a hail of gunfire.
A wrongful death lawsuit filed by Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, says no drugs were found at Taylor’s home.
On Tuesday, protesters marched from a high school to Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s home, where they sat in his front yard.
Police have arrested nearly 100 people, including “Real Housewives of Atlanta” star Porsha Williams and NFL player Kenny Stills, according to NBC affiliate WAVE of Louisville.
Other charges against protesters, including disorderly conduct and criminal trespassing, are still under review, O’Connell said.
“Officers have to make the best decisions they can with the information they have at the time, and we appreciate that the County Attorney agreed that the officers in this case had probable cause to make the charges they made,” Jessie, a spokeswoman for the Louisville Metro Police Department. Halladay said in a statement.
The felony charge alarmed the Kentucky ACLU.
Corey Shapiro, the group’s legal director, said Tuesday that he believed Louisville police were using the measure in an attempt to silence the protests.
“This action is an overreaction, scandalous and inappropriate for a community that is legitimately upset with their government’s delay in holding the police accountable,” Shapiro said by email. “The only purpose these charges appear to serve is to potentially cool the protesters’ freedom of expression rights.”
