The ballistics report from the Kentucky State Police could not determine that Breonna Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, a licensed firearm holder shot a Louisville police officer on the night Taylor was killed, contradicting statements made by Attornery General Daniel Cameron on Wednesday.
According to Vice News: The report concludes that “due to limited markings of comparative value, [the] item was neither identified nor eliminated as having been fired from #45,” which corresponds to the magazine found in Walker’s gun.
During Wednesday’s press conference, Kentucky AG Daniel Cameron said officers Mattingly and Cosgrove use of deadly force was justified since Walker fired first hitting one of the officers and they returned fire. Mattingly and Cosgrove fired six and fifteen times respectively. Taylor was shot six times but only one shot was fatal.
Cameron said the investigation into Taylor’s death ruled out “friendly fire” from former officer Brett Hankison because the three officers were all carrying .40 caliber handguns, while Walker had a 9.
Steve Romines one of the attorneys for Kenneth Walker said he had obtained a Louisville Metro Police Department record that said Hankison had also been issued a 9 mm firearm. He declined to share the document, according to the Louisville Courier Journal.
It is possible that the bullet Walker fired did not hit Sgt. Mattingly in the leg as Attorney General Cameron stated as fact during his press conference on Wednesday.
Walker was charged with attempted murder of a police officer and held in jail for two weeks on a $250,000 bond. The charges have since been dropped.
With all the progress in modern day forensic science, an inconclusive ballistic report could easily be remedied. Patrick McLaughlin, a forensic expert told Vice News, a gunshot residue test could be performed to determine if Mattingly was shot from within three feet. According to Mattingly’s testimony, Walker was approximately 20 feet away when he fired his weapon.
During Cameron’s press conference on Wednesday there was no mention of a gunshot residue test that could substanstiate his claim that Mattingly was not hit by ‘friendly-fire.’
