An emergency in Kentucky, USA, over the murder of a "black-skinned" woman.
The US police declared a state of emergency in Louisville, Kentucky, in preparation for an important announcement by the Attorney General on the case of a "brown-skinned" girl, Briona Taylor, who was killed last March when police stormed her apartment.
The American (Al-Hurra) news channel reported that the authorized and absent police officers were summoned for fear of an outbreak of violence.
Taylor was just 26 years old when US police raided her in her home and opened fire on her for at least five times during a security crackdown on drug traffickers.
The name Briona was strongly present in the massive anti-racism protests in the United States and around the world, following the killing of African American George Floyd by police in Minnesota last May.
George Floyd, the black man who was killed upon his arrest by police in the United States, became a protest cry for equality and justice in some of the largest demonstrations against racism since the 1960s.
During the 13 days of protests in the United States, protesters chanted Floyd's name, and his face was adorned with several murals from Syria to Belfast. But other names were mentioned by the demonstrators, especially Bruna Taylor, a health worker, who died after police shot her eight times when she stormed her apartment in Louisville, Kentucky, on March 13th.
American activists called on people to "sing their name" as part of a movement to remember the victims of black women, who did not attract the attention that others received.
And because Taylor was supposed to be 27, last Friday, a number of mourners gathered, at a vigil in Louisville, to commemorate her. On social media, Americans shared Christmas messages by writing, "You should have been here to celebrate."
During the demonstration, her mother, Tameka Palmer, said: "We were alone in the beginning, but now it is surprising to see so many people defending her and chanting her name."
Palmer added that Taylor would have joined the "Black Lives Matter" protests if she had not been killed.
What happened to Breonna Taylor?
The events of the night Taylor were killed are in dispute. Bruna Taylor, who worked as an emergency medical technician, was in her bed at her home in Louisville when police officers stormed her apartment shortly after midnight. Taylor died after being shot eight times.
Police officers broke into her apartment, using a hammer to execute a search warrant, as part of an investigation into a drug case.
No drugs were found in the house.
And local media said that the police acted under a warrant allowing them to enter the house without warning.
Police said they knocked on the door before storming the house, but the Taylor family and a neighbor denied this was true.
It turns out that the police got the wrong address, and the Taylor family filed an accidental murder case against the police.
Taylor was asleep when her boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, extracted his firearm, according to the lawsuit.
Walker's lawyer said that the latter thought thieves were breaking into the house, and that he shot in self-defense.
Walker called the emergency service number and said, "One of them kicked the door of the house and shot his girlfriend," according to a recording published last week.
Louisville Police said their officers returned fire after an officer was shot.
Where did the lawsuit arrive?
Last May, the Taylor family filed a wrongful death suit, accusing police officers of assault, manslaughter, use of excessive force, negligence and gross negligence.
According to the lawsuit, the officers were not looking for Taylor or her partner, but rather for a suspect, unrelated to them, who was already in custody and did not live in the apartment complex itself.
The search warrant obtained by the officers included Taylor's home. Because the authorities believed that a suspect in a drug trafficking gang had used her apartment to hide drugs, according to CNN News.
A lawyer for the Taylor family described the incident as a "failed police raid".
The FBI opened an investigation into the circumstances of the death on May 21, according to "CNN".
Three officers were placed under administrative leave, but no charges were brought against him.
What has changed since her death?
The officers who entered Taylor's apartment did not have cameras on their bodies to record the events of the break-in.
Louisville Police Department is now required by all officers to wear physical cameras. The issuance of search warrants authorizing the storming of homes has also been suspended, without asking for permission.
The Louisville Police Chief was removed from his post when it was discovered that a number of officers had witnessed the shooting of a black man during a protest, and had not turned on the body cameras.
Why does her story resonate?
People express their sadness, horror, and anger at racism in the United States by sharing photos of Taylor on social media. More than five million people, including the singer Janelle Monae, signed a petition demanding retribution for her.
Many drew attention to alarming statistics documenting the inequalities that African American women endure.
According to the CDC, African American women are three times more likely to die during pregnancy than white American women.
They also experience wide wage disparities; Statistics from the Center for American Progress indicate that African American women earned 61 cents for every dollar a white man earned, in 2017.
As demands for racial equality persist, many seek to keep Bruna Taylor's name alive.
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