The Department of Justice is seeking to have a federal judge dismiss charges against two officers involved in the death of Kentucky woman Breonna Taylor.
Taylor was killed by Louisville police officers while they were executing a no-knock warrant on her home in March 2020, though neither officer was present at the raid that resulted in her demise.
When obtaining the warrant, two other officers with the Louisville Police Department — then-detective Joshua Jaynes and then-sergeant Kyle Meany — alleged that Taylor had been allowing her ex-boyfriend, convicted drug dealer Jamarcus Glover, to ship drugs to her home.
When police showed up at her home, her then-current boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, opened fire on them, prompting them to fire back and hit and kill Taylor.
Breonna Taylor was killed four years ago today. Remember her legacy. Honor her life with action. pic.twitter.com/of62AcOTtk
— Rep. Lucy McBath (@RepLucyMcBath) March 13, 2024
Jaynes and Meany were later accused of falsifying information to obtain the warrant on Taylor’s home, fired from their posts, and hit with a slew of charges, including civil rights violations, conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and making false statements to federal investigators.
Thanks to the courts, some of the felony charges have been lowered to just misdemeanor charges.
“A federal court on two separate occasions in 2023 and again in 2025 struck the Justice Department’s felony allegations against the two former officers, reducing them to misdemeanor color-of-law violations instead,” according to CBS News.
The DOJ is now seeking to have all remaining charges against Jaynes and Meany dismissed, according to a dismissal request written by Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon and acting Deputy Assistant Attorney General Robert Keenan.
ICYMI: The U.S. Justice Department on Friday moved to dismiss pending criminal civil rights charges against former Louisville police officers Joshua Jaynes and Kyle Meany for their roles in the shooting death of Breonna Taylor @SarahNLynch pic.twitter.com/I7roOGQURr
— Ryan Sprouse (@RSprouseNews) March 20, 2026
“In light of the foregoing proceedings, the Government undertook a further review of this matter. Based on that review, and in the exercise of its discretion, the Government has determined that this case should be dismissed in the interest of justice,” Dhillon and Keenan wrote in the request.
Meany was pleased by the request.
“Kyle is incredibly grateful for today’s filings,” his attorney told CBS News. “He is looking forward to putting this matter behind him and moving forward with his life.”
According to The Hill, Jaynes’s attorney, Thomas Clay, added that his client “did absolutely nothing wrong.”
Taylor’s allies, meanwhile, were furious.
“The Department of Justice’s request is not only callous but deeply disrespectful to the memory of Breonna Taylor and to her family, who have waited six long years for justice,” the NAACP’s Louisville branch said in a statement. “This action sends a troubling message and risks undermining public trust in our justice system.”
Attorneys for Taylor’s family, including Ben Crump and Lonita Baker, also responded.
“Breonna Taylor always deserved more than the scraps of justice she got,” they said. “Now, even those may be further stripped away. The Department of Justice’s move to dismiss these remaining charges is deeply painful for Breonna Taylor’s family and it sends a chilling message about the value of black lives in our country.”
Meanwhile, Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, released a statement through Facebook in which she expressed her “extreme disappointment in Trump” and also wrote, “f–k Trump and his DOJ administration.”:
I am compelled to express my extreme disappointment in Trump and the Department of Justice. Their phone call today…
Posted by Tamika Palmer on Friday, March 20, 2026
Only one former Louisville police officer, Brett Hankison, is serving prison time for Taylor’s death — and all thanks to the Biden administration’s decision to press charges against him.
“A federal judge sentenced Hankison to 2 years and nine months in prison and 3 years of supervised release for blindly firing 10 shots into Taylor’s windows on the night she was killed,” according to PBS News.
However, the Trump DOJ has asked that Hankison “be let out of prison while he appeals his conviction,” the network notes.
The other two officers, who reportedly “did shoot Taylor,” were never charged. Prosecutors concluded that they’d been justified in returning fire.
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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