>> INTERESTING AND BIZARRE TIMES, YASMIN VOSSOUGHIAN,
THANKS FOR THAT. ALL RIGHT. NOW
TO SOME MORE BREAKING NEWS.
WE’RE FOLLOWING TONIGHT. A
KENTUCKY JURY HAS RETURNED A
PRETRIAL VERDICT IN THE TRIAL OF
FORMER LOUISVILLE POLICE OFFICER
BRETT HANKINSON. THIS IS IN
CONNECTION TO THE KILLING OF
BREONNA TAYLOR. THE JURY FINDING
HIM NOT GUILTY OF VIOLATING THE
CIVIL RIGHTS OF NEIGHBORS DURING
THE MARCH 2020 RAID. THEY’RE
STILL DELIBERATING, THOUGH, ON
WHETHER HE VIOLATED BREONNA
TAYLOR’S CIVIL RIGHTS. NOW, THIS
COMES AFTER THE JURY WENT INTO
OVERTIME ON DAY THREE OF
DELIBERATIONS. THEY TOLD THE
JUDGE EARLIER TODAY THEY WERE
STRUGGLING TO COME TO A
UNANIMOUS DECISION, BUT THE
JUDGE URGED THEM TO CONTINUE.
NOW, A SIMILAR SITUATION PLAYED
OUT AT THE FEDERAL TRIAL LAST
YEAR AND THAT ENDED UP IN A
MISTRIAL. NBC’S ADRIAN BROADUS
JOINS ME NOW WITH MORE. SO
ADRIAN, WALK US THROUGH WHAT
WE’VE SEEN PLAY OUT IN COURT
TODAY. SO FAR. AND DO WE KNOW
WHAT JURORS ARE STUCK ON?
>> WELL, STEPHEN, IT’S BEEN A
LONG DAY FOR MEMBERS OF THIS
JURY.
>> I WANT TO TAKE YOU BACK TO
YESTERDAY, BECAUSE THAT’S WHEN
WE HAD A QUESTION FROM MEMBERS
OF THE JURY ON COUNT ONE, THIS
IS THE COUNT THAT WE ARE STILL
WAITING TO HEAR FROM THEM ON
YESTERDAY, THE JURY WANTED TO
KNOW, DO WE NEED TO KNOW IF
BREONNA TAYLOR WAS A LIVING
VICTIM WHEN BRETT HANKINSON
FIRED?
>> NOW THE GOVERNMENT REFERRED
THEM TO THEIR INSTRUCTIONS AND
SO DID THE DEFENSE. AND THEY
WENT BACK TO DELIBERATING.
>> SO TODAY, IT APPEARS THEY MAY
BE STUCK ON WHETHER TAYLOR WAS
ALIVE WHEN HANKINSON FIRED THOSE
SHOTS. WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
>> DURING CLOSING ARGUMENTS ON
WEDNESDAY, MEMBERS OF THE
DEFENSE TEAM CALLED INTO
QUESTION WHETHER OR NOT TAYLOR
WAS STILL ALIVE WHEN HANKINSON
FIRED HIS ROUND.
>> SAYING IN PART, HOW COULD HE
VIOLATE BREONNA TAYLOR’S CIVIL
RIGHTS IF SHE WASN’T ALIVE?
>> BY CONTRAST, PROSECUTORS
ARGUED IN THIS CASE THAT THAT
FORMER OFFICER ACTED RECKLESSLY,
COMPARING THIS NIGHT IN MARCH
2020 TO THAT OF A DRIVE BY
SHOOTING WHEN HE FIRED BLINDLY
THROUGH THOSE WINDOWS WHICH WERE
COVERED WITH BLINDS, AND THAT
SLIDING GLASS DOOR.
>> SO TONIGHT WE DO HAVE A
PARTIAL VERDICT. THIS JURY, MADE
UP OF AT LEAST FIVE WHITE MEN,
ONE BLACK MAN AND SIX WHITE
WOMEN HAVE FOUND HIM NOT GUILTY
ON COUNT TWO. AND THAT WAS
LINKED TO VIOLATING THE CIVIL
RIGHTS OF BREONNA TAYLOR’S
NEIGHBORS, STEPHEN AND ADRIAN.
>> WE MENTIONED THE MISTRIAL IN
THE FEDERAL TRIAL LAST YEAR. ARE
WE SEEING DIFFERENCES IN THIS
TRIAL COMPARED TO THAT ONE?
>> SO ONE KEY DIFFERENCE IS
MEMBERS OF THE JURY.
>> IT’S AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT
JURY.
>> BUT IN REGARDS TO WITNESS
TESTIMONY, WHAT WE SAW IN THIS
RETRIAL AT THE FEDERAL LEVEL
REALLY REFLECTED WHAT WE SAW
BEFORE. NOW, I DO WANT TO
UNDERSCORE THAT AT THE STATE
LEVEL, HANKINSON WAS ACQUITTED
ON ALL OF HIS CHARGES.
>> STEPHEN.