Breonna Taylor Death: Ex-Detective Confesses Faking Search Warrant That Led to Killing

A former Louisville detective on Tuesday pled guilty in federal court to assisting the falsification of a search warrant that resulted in the death of Breonna Taylor, which spurred a flurry of demonstrations over abuses in law enforcement.

Kelly Goodlett, the former officer, entered her plea before the US District Court Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings presided over the case at a federal court in Louisville, Kentucky, according to Reuters.

Goodlett pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, making her the first officer to face criminal charges in connection with the disastrous raid. Goodlett was accused of collaborating with another investigator to falsify the warrant that led to the raid and then concealing the falsification.

When she is sentenced, the 35-year-old could face five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and three years of supervised release. The Courier Journal in Louisville reported that a sentencing hearing in the Breonna Taylor case has been tentatively scheduled for November 22.

According to the publication, Goodlett, who appeared with her attorney Brandon Marshall, was forced to surrender her passport.

Cracking Down Police Abuses

On August 4, the US Justice Department prosecuted four former Louisville Metropolitan Police Department detectives for their roles in the 2020 raid that led to Breonna Taylor Death in her home.

Following a string of high-profile police shootings of black Americans around the country, the charges were the Justice Department's latest move to crack down on police misconduct and racial inequities.

Goodlett quit the department on August 5, a day after US Attorney General Merrick Garland announced new federal charges.

Officers shot Taylor shortly after midnight on March 13, 2020, while executing a search warrant at her Louisville apartment. Taylor's boyfriend fired a shot that struck one of the officers as they approached the door, and the officers returned fire, hitting Taylor several times, as reported by the New York Post.

Goodlett's Guilty Plea Was Expected

The federal government recently charged Goodlett and three other co-defendants, including Sgt. Kyle Meany and former detectives Joshua Jaynes and Brett Hankison, with violating civil rights. The majority of the accusations arose from the erroneous narcotics warrant that was used to search Taylor's residence.

Hankison was the only officer charged who was on the scene the night of the incident of Breonna Taylor Death and was acquitted on state charges in March. When the new charges were announced in early August, US Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that the officers who were at Taylor's residence were not involved in the writing of the request and were unaware of the false and misleading assertions.

Earlier this month, According to the Courier Journal, Goodlett was expected to plead guilty - and testify against her colleagues - because she was charged by information rather than an indictment.

Garland said Jaynes and Goodlett collaborated to fabricate an investigative document produced after Breonna Taylor Death . A third complaint had been brought against Goodlett, alleging that she colluded with Jaynes to fabricate Taylor's warrant affidavit, per Fox News.

Jaynes and Goodlett allegedly met in a garage in May 2020 "where they agreed to tell investigators a false story," according to Garland.

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Louisville, Police brutality