Continued from Part 1
In the legal suit against Mattingly, Cosgrove and Hankison brought by Tamika Palmer, Breonna’s mother, and her attorney, Sam Aguiar, SAM AGUIAR INJURY LAWYERS, the Preliminary Statement includes this sentence:
Neither of the two (Breonna or Kenneth -ed) had any criminal history for drugs or violence.
However, during his interview immediately following the event, Walker said: “I just went to jail here for the first time ever a couple of months ago ‘cause I wrecked my car and got a DUI. And I’m still going to court right now for that… But other than that I got locked up in Warren County in Bowling Green in like 2011. I stole a hack from the mom…” (During the DUI arrest his gun was taken because he carried a concealed deadly weapon and was advised to get a gun license.)
Readers, please know that the purpose of this blog series is not to demean any person or family. All of the information presented can be found on the LMPD website. From my reading, it appears that Kenneth Walker’s loving family is reputable, and that he got caught in the Marijuana Mousetrap on one of Kentucky’s fine state university campuses. He noted to an investigator that he was not from ‘the hood.’
Is it not right, however, that Brett Hankison, who also has loving parents and daughter, many commendations from grateful citizens, and who faithfully protected us for nearly two decades, be afforded thorough reporting and respectful media coverage— though only by a citizen’s blog?
Continuing: In documents on the LMPD website, it is stated: “It should be noted investigators weren’t informed prior to the charges being dismissed against Kenneth Walker. Investigators learned this information from an outside law enforcement entity. At the time of the dismissal investigators were reviewing a forensic examination report of Kenneth Walker’s cell phone. This examination showed Walker was clearly trafficking in marijuana and prescription medication. The report documents numerous communications between Walker and other parties confirming Walker’s drug trade.”
Why was this not brought out in court? Trials have protocols that leave citizens in the dark.
We might also ask: Why was Walker’s apartment not searched? Or, was it? He stated in his deposition that he lived just around the corner from Breonna. However, in many statements and in media coverage he is said to have lived with her as her fiancé. Of course, to say they were cohabiting makes it easier to refute any connection she had with Glover.
Please read Atty. Aguiar’s brief to consider for yourself many questionable claims, such as, “The officers then entered Breonna’s home without knocking and without announcing themselves as police officers.” This is stated as a Fact, despite the seven officers who testified otherwise, who also said none of them entered her apartment.
In the FACTS (section IV of Aguiar’s document), we read:
48. As confirmed by multiple neighbors, the Defendant officers did not knock or identify themselves prior to entering Breonna’s home.
49. Knocking and announcing is critical for a warrant of this nature to be executed safely. Reasons include but are not limited to the following:
a. The officers were in plain clothes;
Etc. There are 74 ‘facts’ to read.
The police wore black vests clearly marked POLICE - See photos from the early morning hours of March 13, 2020, on the LMPD website.
In addition to demanding a trial by jury of all issues, the Palmer/Aguiar case sought:
compensatory damages in an amount to be shown at trial
punitive damages in an amount to be shown at trial
costs incurred in this action and reasonable attorney fees;
more…
Unbelievably, before the Daniel Cameron Grand Jury announced its conclusions, Ms. Palmer was awarded $12 million dollars. However, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said the agreement did not include an admission of wrongdoing. ?
The City of Louisville must be a gold mine.
If a law-and-order mayor had been in office, might he or she have gone to court with Aguiar to present a trainload of facts rather than paying the vast sum to the plaintiff? There would certainly be numerous misstatements in the brief to question.
Why did the media and officials always credit Walker as being honest when he said “No” to Prosecutor Songer’s question: “Did it even cross your mind at that point that it might be the police outside at 1:00 in the morning?”
In a timeline of the Breonna Taylor shooting, the Courier-Journal reported:
March 27: Jefferson Circuit Judge Olu Stevens releases Walker on home incarceration, invoking the ire of the local Fraternal Order of Police, with Lodge 614 President Ryan Nichols calling the move "a slap in the face to everyone wearing a badge." Rob Eggert, Walker's defense attorney, says it is the police who killed Taylor who are "the threat to the community."
…
May 21: In a motion to dismiss Walker's criminal charges, Eggert, his defense attorney, provides a recording showing that LMPD Sgt. Amanda Seelye never told a grand jury that Walker said he didn't know he was shooting at police March 13, nor that Taylor was killed when police returned fire.
Indeed, because the grand jury was not told by Amanda Seelye, the lead investigator, that Walker did not know the police were at the door, the indictment against him for Attempted Murder was dropped. Atty. Eggert stated:
The Grand Jury was woefully misled to great undue prejudice against Mr. Walker. This process ignored the “ethical obligation of prosecutors to observe the independent status of the grand jury and ensure that indictments are returned in a just manner.” Com. v. Baker, 11 S.W.3d 585, 588 (Ky. App. 2000). Had the police presented the actual facts of the event to the Grand Jury, the Grand Jury presentation would have lasted longer than two minutes, and Mr. Walker would not have been indicted. Due to the extreme misleading of the Grand Jury, the Indictment must be dismissed against Mr. Walker.
Walker was later paid $2 million by the gold mine to resolve his state and federal lawsuits.
The gold mine advised Breonna’s neighbors— whose civil rights were argued by the DOJ in the mistrial and will be argued in the re-trial— to get an attorney. The neighbors are asking for $12 million plus $1.