The Louisville police officer involved in the shooting that killed Breonna Taylor in her apartment in March called protesters “thugs” and “criminals” in an email rant to more than 1,000 officers, the Louisville Courier-Journal reported.
The long, disturbing and incendiary email came from police Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly, who is currently assigned to desk duty during the investigation of him and two other officers involved in the police raid that led to Taylor’s death. Mattingly claims the cops “did the legal, moral and ethical thing that night” when they burst into Taylor’s apartment in search of drugs.
This comes as Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron wraps up his investigation of the three officers, who on March 13, 2020, burst into Taylor’s apartment while executing a no-knock warrant. Kenneth Walker, Taylor’s boyfriend and a licenced gun owner, said he fired a shot in self-defense because he thought they were being robbed. The trio of cops emptied their firearms, with several bullets striking Taylor, who died at the scene.
A grand jury was convened and is currently deliberating evidence presented by Cameron. The Louisville Metropolitan Police Department has instituted a preemptive “state of emergency” and several federal buildings have already been boarded up as the city awaits a decision about whether the officers will be indicted.
Vice News correspondent Roberto Aram Ferdman first gained access to the emails that were sent by Mattingly to approximately 1,000 police officers at about 2 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2020.
“You DO NOT DESERVE to be in this position. The position that allows thugs to get in your face and yell, curse and degrade you. Throw bricks bottles and urine on you and expect you to do nothing,” wrote Mattingly, who was shot in the leg by Walker.
Mattingly’s attorney, Kent Wicker, confirmed to the Courier-Journal that the officer sent the email under the name “John.”
“Sgt. Mattingly sent an email to his colleagues last evening expressing his support for them and their work in these difficult times,” Wicker told the newspaper. “As you know, he was shot and severely wounded during the serving of this search warrant. Like our entire community, he is hopeful this process moves forward quickly and that his fellow officers and the people of Louisville remain safe.”
Flip the page to view the scathing emails Mattingly sent the officers, according to the Courier-Journal and Ferdman.
