Hundreds march again in Louisville protest
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A diverse crowd of hundreds marched through this city’s streets chanting “Black Lives Matter” on Saturday night, the fourth night of protests after a grand jury declined to charge officers in the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor.
People in the crowd also chanted “No Justice, no peace” as cars honked along a busy downtown artery. The city has seen more than 120 days of demonstrations over the death of the 26-year-old Black woman in a police raid gone wrong.
A few police cars followed behind, with officers telling protesters to stay on the sidewalk and out of the street.
But as a 9 p.m. curfew approached, a police loudspeaker announced that anyone who remained in a downtown park would be arrested for a curfew violation. The square largely emptied out as people departed, and one group headed to a nearby church where protesters had gathered on previous nights.
A protest Friday night was peaceful, though police arrested 22 people for curfew violations. A police spokesman said some also were charged with failure to disperse.
Mayor Greg Fischer had urged continued peaceful protests in an appearance at a news conference Saturday evening.
“I’m mindful that many in our community are hurting and angry about the decisions announced this week,” Fischer said. He said he supports protesters’ First Amendment rights to protest, though “we just ask you to do that peacefully please.”
Taylor was shot multiple times March 13 after her boyfriend fired at police who had entered her home during a narcotics raid by white officers, authorities said.
Taylor’s boyfriend said he didn’t know who was coming in and fired in self-defense, wounding one officer.
On Wednesday, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron announced that a grand jury indicted one officer on wanton endangerment charges, saying he fired gunshots into a neighboring home during the raid that didn’t strike anyone. That officer has been fired.
Cameron said the other officers were not charged with Taylor’s killing because they acted to protect themselves.
The grand jury’s ruling weighed heavily on protesters like Amber Brown. A central figure in the downtown demonstrations, Brown said she was angry.
“It feels like we went backward,” she said Friday night. “I think people are still in shock and we’re not sure how to move forward.”