Former LMPD detective Brett Hankison intends to testify at his February trial for wanton endangerment charges stemming from the raid that killed Breonna Taylor, according to court documents filed this week. The defense also intends to call on Myles Cosgrove and Jonathan Mattingly — the two other officers who fired their weapons in the raid — as witnesses.
Hankison, whose trial is scheduled to begin on Feb. 1, faces three charges of first degree wanton endangerment for shots he fired in the March 13, 2020 raid that entered a neighboring apartment that was occupied by a child, a pregnant woman and a man. Wanton endangerment is a Class D felony and if guilty, Hankison could face up to five years in prison for each count.
According to a Jan. 3 motion filed by Hankison’s attorney, the defense plans on calling on a total of 12 current or former LMPD officers — including Hankison, Mattingly and Cosgrove — to testify.
Hankison is the only officer facing charges relating to the raid. Neither he nor any other officers face any charges directly tied to Taylor’s death.
However, Hankison and two other officers were fired from LMPD for their role in the raid that killed Taylor. In a termination letter from June 2020, then-interim police chief Robert Schroeder wrote that Hankison “displayed an extreme indifference to the value of human life” when he “wantonly and blindly" fired 10 shots into Taylor's apartment.
Cosgrove, who fired his weapon 16 times, and is responsible for the shot that was determined to have killed Taylor, was fired from the department for failing to identify a target during the raid. Det. Joshua Jaynes was also fired for being untruthful in the search warrant for Taylor’s apartment.
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