Louisville, Kentucky is bracing for riots – federal buildings will be closed and windows boarded up next week in a move speculated to coincide with a possible announcement on whether the officers involved in the death of Breonna Taylor will be charged criminally, New York Post reports.
The city’s historic Gene Snyder U.S. Courthouse and Customs House will be closed to the public Sept. 21 -25, according to an order signed Friday by Chief Judge Greg N. Stivers, of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. A courthouse official confirmed to the Louisville Courier Journal it was in anticipation of an impending announcement over possible charges.
US Attorney Russell Coleman also requested Homeland Security provide protection for the courthouse and three other neighboring federal buildings, the Louisville paper said.
On Sunday federal buildings were boarded up ready for a feared violent backlash if the officers are not charged, Fox News said along with images of boards being put over windows.
The New York Post reported Louisville last week agreed to a $12 million settlement of a wrongful-death lawsuit brought by the family of Taylor, the 26-year-old gunned down by cops during a botched no-knock raid on her home in March.
So far none of the officers involved in the March narcotics raid that resulted in Taylor’s death have been charged and the lack of charges has been the rallying cry during many of the sometimes-violent national protests.
Legal experts told Fox News that it is possible some of the officers will not face homicide charges, however — sparking fears of a violent backlash in the city.
Local criminal-defense attorneys also told the Courier Journal that homicide charges are unlikely because Kentucky’s self-defense law allows police to use deadly force if their life is in danger — and Taylor’s boyfriend is accused of opening fire during the botched raid.