Louisville city council unanimously pass 'Breonna's Law' to ban no-knock warrants
"This is one of many critical steps on police reform that we’ve taken to create a more peaceful, just, compassionate and equitable community," the Louisville mayor said.
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Louisville council to vote on police reform bill honoring Breonna Taylor
June 11, 202003:18
“Breonna’s Law,” named after the former EMT who died in a police raid at her apartment.
The unanimously passed ordinance, which still needs to be approved by the mayor, bans any search warrant that does not require police to announce themselves and their purpose at the premises. It requires any Louisville Metro Police Department or Metro law enforcement to knock and wait a minimum of 15 seconds for a response.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer vowed to pass the ban as “soon as it hits my desk.”
“This is one of many critical steps on police reform that we’ve taken to create a more peaceful, just, compassionate and equitable community,” Fischer said on Twitter Thursday.
Tamika Palmer, Taylor's mother, praised the passage by the city council. She spoke to the press after the
vote along with the family's attorney, Benjamin Crump.
"I'm just going to say that Breonna, that's all she wanted to do was save lives," Palmer said. "So with this law, she'll get to continue to do that."
Taylor, who was a licensed emergency medical technician, was fatally shot by police when plainclothes officers arrived after midnight on March 13 to serve a no-knock warrant in a drug case.
At a March 13 news conference, police Lt. Ted Eidem said officers had knocked on the door several times and "announced their presence as police who were there with a search warrant." After forcing their way in, they “were immediately met by gunfire,” Eidem said.