Taylor's sister, Ju'Niyah, wrote that the system failed their family.
Breonna Taylor's sister, Ju'Niyah, has spoken out after one officer was indicted in connection with her sibling's death. Ju'Niyah took to Instagram on Wednesday to express how "sorry" she was that the system failed their family.
Former Louisville Metro Police Department Detective Brett Hankison was charged with three counts of first-degree wanton endangerment by the grand jury on Wednesday, the Associated Press reports. The charges relate to Hankison shooting into neighboring apartments during the incident, not Breonna's death itself. The former officer was fired after Breonna's death in March.
"Sister I am so sorry," Ju'Niyah wrote alongside a graduation photo of herself with Breonna.
"Sister, you was failed by a system you worked hard for and I am so sorry. I love you so so so so so much," she wrote in another Instagram Story post.
On Thursday, Taylor's mother, Tamika Palmer, posted for the first time since the grand jury's indictment when she shared a portrait of her daughter to Instagram.
"It’s still Breonna Taylor for me💙💔💙 #ThesystemfailedBreonna," Palmer captioned the post.
The 26-year-old EMT was killed in her home by Louisville Metro Police in March. Breonna and her boyfriend were in their home when police made a late-night raid on the wrong address. She was shot eight times. None of the officers involved had been arrested or charged until Wednesday.
Earlier this month, however, the city of Louisville already agreed to pay $12 million to her family and institute police reform in the family's wrongful death suit.
Following the grand jury's decision, the NAACP released a statement, echoing Ju'Niyah's sentiments about how the system failed them.
"The injustice we’re witnessing at this moment can be sensed throughout the nation. Kentucky General Daniel Cameron’s failure to bring substantial charges against the officers who murdered Breonna Taylor causes angst and pain for far too many Americans still reeling from a pandemic," the statement reads, per CNN. "The charges of wanton endangerment in connection with the murder of Breonna Taylor does not go far enough and is a miscarriage of justice for her family and the people of Louisville. The justice system failed Breonna Taylor and, as such, failed us."
Countless celebrities, including Kerry Washington, Mandy Moore, Ava DuVernay, Common, Stevie Wonder and many more, have taken to social media to express their anger, frustration and hurt over the decision.
"God bless Breonna’s family and all who knew and loved her," DuVernay tweeted. "Her tragic death compounded by the violence of silence and inaction by the city she called home is more than any of them should have to endure."
"Praying for Breonna’s mother and family," Bernice King, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., wrote on Twitter. "Because they knew and loved her before her name became a hashtag."
For more on Breonna Taylor, see below.
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