Three grand jurors in the Breonna Taylor case and other concerned citizens filed a petition with the state House of Representatives on Friday, accusing Kentucky Attorney General of committing “misdemeanors in office” and calling for his impeachment, alleging he lied to the public about the investigation into Taylor’s death.
The petition claims Cameron misrepresented the findings of the grand jury in the Taylor case to the public and lied about what was presented to the jurors.
Cameron “deceived the American people and the citizens of this Commonwealth with regard to his office’s handling and involvement” in the Taylor investigation, the petition says. He, it alleges, “misled the public” when he said the grand jury agreed that police were “justified” in returning fire.
In September, Cameron announced at a news conference that the grand jury had decided not to bring criminal charges against any officers for Taylor’s killing. The announcement left the wide impression that the grand jury outcome meant Cameron’s hands were tied in filing homicide charges against the officers, but prosecutors have the power under law to present such a case to subsequent grand jury panels until the desired indictment is obtained.
Taylor, 26, was shot killed in her apartment by Louisville police in March during a botched execution of a no-knock warrant. Her death sparked nationwide protests and calls for the officers involved to face criminal charges.
Based on the evidence presented by Cameron’s office, the grand jury indicted one officer, Sgt. Brett Hankison, on wanton endangerment charges for for recklessly firing his weapon into several apartments and endangering Taylor’s neighbors. Hankinson was fired from the department in June.
The attorney for three of the grand jurors in the Taylor case signed the petition on their behalf in order to protect their identities.
“These are randomly selected citizens who were compelled to sit on a grand jury and were terribly misused by the most powerful law enforcement official in Kentucky, said the attorney, Kevin Glogower. “It is truly a testament to the Kentucky Constitution that they are able to be here today and to expose injustice and demand public accountability.”
A week after the September announcement that no officers would be charged directly in Taylor’s death, one juror filed a motion seeking to allow jurors to speak openly about the case.
The petitioner said Cameron used the grand jury “as a shield to deflect accountability and responsibility.” Two other jurors have spoken out about their disapproval of Cameron’s handling of the case.
Cameron later revealed that the only charge recommended to the grand jury panel was the wanton endangerment charge.
The petition requests that the House remove Cameron from office and bar him “from holding any office of honor, trust or profit” within Kentucky because he “lied to the Grand Jury by excluding information and charges available to them, then lied to the public about what he had told the Grand Jury.”
The petition also calls for Cameron’s removal for “incitement and support of insurrection and violence,” over his involvement with a Republican organization that paid for robocalls encouraging citizens to participate in the Jan. 6 demonstration at the U.S. Capitol building in Washington.
The petition also accuses Cameron of misusing taxpayer funds by supporting a lawsuit challenging ballots in Pennsylvania in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election.
