The Attorney General’s office has held they did not violate the Open Records Act by denying a request for prosecutorial records in the investigation into the death of Breonna Taylor.
On March 13, Taylor, a Black emergency medical worker was fatally shot in her Louisville home by white Louisville Metro Police officers during a botched drug raid after one of the police was shot in the leg by her boyfriend, who thought someone was trying to break into her apartment.
Written by Tom Latek of Kentucky Today
One of the three police officers involved in the incident, Brett Hankison, was indicted by a Jefferson County grand jury on three counts of wanton endangerment after he fired shots into an occupied adjacent apartment and was terminated by the city. No charges were filed against the two officers who fired the fatal shots.
Samuel Klusmeyer, who was the appellant in the matter, requested such records as “audio recordings, uncompiled evidence presented and on file with the court (testimonies, statements, etc.), and any other evidence already presented to the media.”
In response, the AG’s Office denied the request, because under the Open Records Act, those records are exempt from inspection.
According to the language of the law, “records or information compiled and maintained by county attorneys or Commonwealth’s attorneys pertaining to criminal investigations or criminal litigation shall be exempted from the provisions of KRS 61.870 to 61.884 and shall remain exempted after enforcement action, including litigation, is completed or a decision is made to take no action.”
They also cited the ongoing prosecution of Brett Hankinson as another statutory exemption under the Open Records Act.
Although the Attorney General’s office is not mentioned in the Open Records Act, the office noted that in this case they are also exempt from inspection or disclosure. “That is so because this Office is operating as a special prosecutor under KRS 15.210, and is cloaked with the same authority as the Jefferson County Commonwealth’s Attorney.”
The decision was written by Assistant Attorney General Marc Manley.
Although Open Records and Open Meetings decisions by the AG’s office carry the force of law, they may be appealed to the appropriate circuit court.
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Written by Tom Latek. Cross-posted from Kentucky Today.