Beyoncé writes open letter asking Kentucky attorney general for justice in murder of Breonna Taylor
As reported by CNN, Beyonce’s has shared an open letter addressed to Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron asking for justice in the murder of Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman who was shot at least eight times in her home by three plainclothes police officers without body cameras who were serving a “no-knock” warrant (meaning they did not have to announce themselves or why they were there) back in March. The police were there as part of a narcotics investigation, but as later revealed in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Taylor’s mother, the suspect that the police had been looking for had already been arrested at another location by the time Taylor was killed. The three officers (Jon Mattingly, Myles Cosgrove, and Brett Hankison) have not been charged with anything, and the incident report released by the Louisville police department was almost entirely blank—right down to the injuries of the woman who was shot eight times by the police being listed as “none.”
Beyonce’s letter suggests that the official investigations have “created more questions than answers” and asks Cameron—who, CNN points out, is a Republican—to bring criminal charges against the officers and to conduct a transparent investigation into what happened here and what causes the “pervasive practices that result in the repeated deaths of unarmed Black citizens.” She also ends her letter by saying that “there are two real tragedies” whenever a Black person is killed by the police: “The death itself and the inaction and delays that follow it.”
The Kentucky Attorney General’s office has since released a statement to CNN, confirming that it is aware of Beyoncé’s letter but that it will not comment on an “ongoing investigation.” Last week, Louisville passed “Breonna’s Law,” which bans the use of no-knock warrants.
Looking for ways to advocate for Black lives? Check out this list of resources by our sister site Lifehacker for ways to get involved.