Key moments from the Brett Hankison federal trial that ended in a deadlocked jury

The nearly three-week federal trial of whether former Louisville Metro Police Detective Brett Hankison violated the civil rights of Breonna Taylor, her boyfriend and three neighbors during the police raid that killed her ended Thursday with a deadlocked jury.

Taylor, a 26-year-old emergency room technician, was inside her South End apartment when she was fatally shot by plainclothes officers attempting to serve a search warrant at 12:40 a.m., March 13, 2020, as a part of a narcotics investigation.

The government accused Hankison of using excessive force, while his defense team argued the former LMPD detective's actions were justified based on his perception that he was saving the lives of fellow officers.

Hankison's federal trial included testimony from around two dozen witnesses. Here are some of the key moments:

LMPD officers say they wouldn't have shot through windows

Several current and former LMPD officers were called to the stand, including Myles Cosgrove, who fired the bullet that killed Taylor.

During his testimony, Cosgrove said Hankison was firing his weapon from the parking lot after other officers had ceased firing and moved away from Taylor’s front door.

Hankison has said he fired his weapon on the sidewalk right outside Taylor's apartment. The prosecution said his shell casings were discovered farther back, in the parking lot.

On the stand, Cosgrove called Hankison's conduct “unfathomably dangerous.”

Four other current or former LMPD officers told the jury they would not have fired into Taylor's apartment window and glass door, which they said were covered and provided no view.

The witnesses said it is against LMPD policy and training for an officer to fire their weapon without "positive target identification," where they can see an imminent threat to human life.

However, as part of cross-examinations, defense attorneys repeatedly said these officers did not know what Hankison heard or saw that night.

Hankison grilled under cross-examination

At the time of the shooting, and in a subsequent interview with investigators, Hankison said he saw an AR-15 rifle and muzzle flashes from it. He knew another officer had been shot and believed they were being "executed," he said.

He echoed these words on the stand during his federal trial.

While it was initially dark inside the apartment when police kicked open the front door, Hankison said the room was illuminated by a muzzle flash. With that light, Hankison said he saw a large figure toward the end of the hallway, in a shooter stance.

Hankison has said he had target identification of an active shooter then.

During cross-examination, federal prosecutor Michael Songer asked why Hankison fired first through the sliding glass door, which opens into the living room, rather than where he had last seen the shooter − Kenneth Walker, Taylor's boyfriend − which was in the back of the hallway.

Hankison said he thought Walker had been walking toward the officers while firing a weapon.

"So you guessed," Songer said.

Hankison's defense asks: What would you have done?

Defense attorney Stewart Mathews emphasized that this moment — which they've all been discussing and debating ad nauseam for the past three years — spanned only a "handful of seconds" for Hankison that night.

While Mathews said he thought Hankison reacted to the situation as permitted by LMPD policy on use of deadly force, a potential violation of the department's policies and procedures "is not necessarily criminal."

"Even a mistake does not arise to the level of a crime,” Mathews said during closing arguments.

If his perception was reasonable in the chaos of that moment, then it was not criminal, Mathews said.

Mathews asked jurors to put themselves in Hankison's shoes, telling them to imagine what they would have done in that frenzied moment.

Defense witness changes testimony on stand

Several people who were at Taylor's apartment the night of the raid testified about what they saw leading up to and during the gunfire.

Officers on the scene, including Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Hankison, have said the group announced themselves as police several times while repeatedly knocking on the door before ramming the front entrance open.

Hankison's defense called Aaron Sarpee, who was at the apartment complex to pick up his child from one of Taylor's upstairs neighbors. Sarpee told the jury what he saw when he briefly stepped outside and spoke to police right before the door was breached.

Sarpee has changed his testimony a few times since that night.

He initially told police he didn't hear police identify and announce themselves. However, later in grand jury testimony, Sarpee said he heard an announcement from LMPD officers when he stepped onto an exterior staircase; the grand jury was told Sarpee had a "language barrier" and seemed confused by the questioning.

But testifying in Hankison's federal trial, Sarpee said he did not hear LMPD officers announce themselves as police before Taylor's front door was breached.

A federal prosecutor had Sarpee explain on the stand that he is a veteran with PTSD, which can affect his memory.

Jury deliberation stretches days, ends in mistrial

The jury deliberated several days — a sharp contrast to the three hours it took for a jury to decide Hankison's state trial on wanton endangerment charges related to the shooting.

Hankison was acquitted of those state charges last year and has since had those criminal charges expunged.

During federal deliberations, the jury asked a few questions, including a request for the court transcript. That request was denied, with the judge instructing the jury to instead rely on memory.

Thursday afternoon, after about three days of deliberations, the jury sent a note saying it was at an impasse and asked what would happen if the 12 members could not make a unanimous decision. Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings issued an Allen charge, which urged the jury to reach a verdict.

However, a few hours later, the jury reaffirmed their split stance. While federal prosecutors argued the jury should be sent home and reconvene the next day for further deliberation, the judge decided to declare a mistrial.

It is not clear how the jury was split, but the prosecution expressed interest in polling the jurors after they were dismissed.

Hankison's trial ends in hung jury: A look at what that means and what's next

Reach reporter Rachel Smith at rksmith@courierjournal.com or @RachelSmithNews on X, formerly known as Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Former LMPD Detective Brett Hankison's federal trial: 5 takeaways