Planned Parenthood Statement on Breonna Taylor Decision 

LOUISVILLE, KY — Today, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron delivered his decision regarding the more than six-month long case in the murder of Breonna Taylor of Louisville, Kentucky. Attorney General Cameron indicted one officer of criminal charges, and cleared the remaining officers of any wrongdoing. Tamarra Wieder, Kentucky State Director for Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana and Kentucky (PPAIK) released the following statement on the decision and the violence against Black people at the hands of the police. 

Statement from Tamarra Wieder, Kentucky State Director for PPAIK:

“This is one more example of state-sanctioned violence against Black people and an assault against their ability to live freely. This is a painful loss for the family of Breonna Taylor, and for Louisville and the state of Kentucky. This country is grappling with a racial reckoning — around police violence, the disproportionate impact on COVID-19, and racist and discriminatory systems that impact access to health care. The delta between justice and freedom is vast. 

The police officers who killed a sleeping woman were found innocent and will not face criminal charges, and the remaining officer was charged with ‘wanton endangerment.’ Attorney General Cameron’s decision is not the justice Breonna Taylor deserves. Cameron continues to claim the “truth” is before us. The truth is, he has failed Breonna, her grieving family, and our entire community. This is why thousands across the country are marching in the street demanding justice and accountability. 

“Racism permeates every structure in our society. If Black people do not have the right to bodily autonomy to live their daily lives — or protest the violence against their lives — without the fear of violence or murder, we can never achieve justice, let alone reproductive freedom.

“This is another call to action to dismantle white supremacy and transform the police and systems that have long created an unjust world for Black and Brown people. Every system that governs us — education, policing, transportation, housing, health care, and more — needs accountability. We will continue the fight for Breonna Taylor.”

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Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana and Kentucky (PPAIK) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to ensuring access to affordable reproductive health care, including abortion, by educating residents and policy-makers about issues affecting Hoosiers and Kentuckians. PPAIK lobbies and educates to advance Planned Parenthood’s mission and engages in limited electoral activities.