At least one police officer has been shot in Kentucky in the US after no officers were charged with offences directly linked to the killing of Breonna Taylor in March.
Protesters have been marching in Louisville, Kentucky’s largest city, with some arrested after scuffles broke out with officers.
Louisville police did not provide further information on the circumstances of the shooting or details on the officer’s condition.
Protesters and police clash in Louisville during Breonna Taylor protests
”We currently have an officer shot. We’ll update when we can,” police said in a statement.
Police in protective gear, National Guard members and armoured military vehicles were seen in the centre of the Kentucky city as protesters responded with tears and anger after a grand jury declined to charge police officers for the fatal shooting of Ms Taylor.
Wednesday’s demonstrations were reignited after prosecutors announced a single officer had been indicted, though not on charges involving the 26-year-old’s death on 13 March.
Police officers make arrests during Louisville protests on Wednesday
Of the three officers involved, Brett Hankison was the only one to be indicted on three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment – after he fired his gun into neighbouring apartments.
He could face up to five years in prison for each of the three counts.
Brett Hankison has been charged with wanton endangerment Pic: Shelby County Detention Center
Kentucky’s attorney general Daniel Cameron said the investigation found the remaining two officers were justified in their use of force.
When police lined up with shields outside the courthouse, protesters threw plastic water bottles at them.
Later on, police in riot gear fired flash bangs and formed a line at Jefferson Square – which has been at the centre of the protests.
Breonna Taylor was a qualified emergency medical technician. Pic: Family
The square largely cleared before a nighttime coronavirus curfew as demonstrators marched through other parts of downtown Louisville.
Protests have erupted across the US in retaliation to the Breonna Taylor decision, with demonstrators marching through the streets of New York, Chicago, Washington DC, Atlanta and Philadelphia.
Demonstrators march in the street in Louisville after no officers were charged with the fatal shooting of Breonna Taylor
Protesters in New York were heard chanting, “Say her name, Breonna Taylor,” as they marched on a street in downtown Brooklyn.
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said the investigation found that two police officers were
A grand jury brought no charged for killing Ms Taylor, who was shot multiple times by police who burst into her home during a drug raid gone wrong. While there were no drugs in Ms Taylor’s apartment, her boyfriend shot and injured a police officer.
