Two officers shot as Louisville erupts after police escape charges over killing of Breonna Taylor

Hours after a grand jury brought no charges against Louisville police for the killing of Breonna Taylor and protesters took to the streets, two police officers were shot on Wednesday night during demonstrations expressing anger over the deaths of black people at the hands of police.

One suspect is in custody. Police Chief Robert Schroeder said one officer was alert and stable and the other officer was in surgery and stable. He said the officers had gone to an area in the city to investigate reports of shots fired when they were hit by gunfire.

The city of Louisville erupted in fresh protests after the grand jury in Kentucky declined to charge police officers with the killing of Ms Taylor, whose death has become a rallying cry against racism across the US and the world.

Only one of the three officers involved in the fatal shooting of black emergency medical worker Ms Taylor was indicted on a lower criminal charge of “wanton endangerment”.

Ms Taylor, 26, was shot multiple times by plainclothes officers who entered her home after midnight using a "no-knock" warrant that allowed them to enter without warning during a drugs investigation on March 13.

The warrant used to raid her home was connected to a suspect - her ex-boyfriend - who did not live there, and no drugs were found inside.

Former police officer Brett Hankison, who fired a number of the shots, was on Wednesday charged with three counts of wanton endangerment in the first degree, after it was determined he had shot into neighbouring flats.

The charge carries a penalty of one to five years in prison. The judge set a $15,000 (£12,000) cash bond.

The two other officers involved in the incident were not charged.

Daniel Cameron, Kentucky’s Attorney General, said the pair -  Sgt. Johnathan Mattingly and Officer Myles Cosgrove - were “justified” in their use of force as they fired in self-defence after Ms Taylor’s boyfriend fired a shot.

“This is a gutwrenching, emotional case,” Mr Cameron said. “I understand the public’s desire for answers.

“There’s nothing I can do to take away the heartache (...) but what I can provide today are the facts.”

Asked for his response, Donald Trump declined to comment on the case but argued he had done more for the black community than anyone since Abraham Lincoln.

Louisville’s mayor declared a state of emergency and a 9pm curfew, fearing civil unrest.

Protesters in Louisville and across the country have demanded justice for Ms Taylor and other black people killed by police in recent months. A 911 call of her killing that was released in late May sparked demonstrations across the city and coincided with the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis that galvanised nationwide rallies.

Ms Taylor’s family, and several prominent African American celebrities including Oprah and Beyonce, had joined those urging that the officers be charged with her murder.

“Is that it?” one demonstrator in downtown Louisville shouted after the decision was read. “What the hell”, shouted another.

Tamika Mallory told a crowd gathered: “We have a responsibility to the rest of this nation and for generations to come that we conduct ourselves, not peacefully, but non-violently, so the story that comes out of here is that we are not the murderers, we are not the looters, we are not the burners. They did it to us and we are only responding.”

Al Sharpton, the prominent civil rights leader, called the charges “grossly insufficient”.

Ben Crump, the Taylor family's lawyer, tweeted: "Jefferson County Grand Jury indicts former ofc. Brett Hankison with 3 counts of Wanton Endangerment in 1st Degree for bullets that went into other apartments but NOTHING for the murder of Breonna Taylor. This is outrageous and offensive!

"If Brett Hankison's behavior was wanton endangerment to people in neighboring apartments, then it should have been wanton endangerment in Breonna Taylor's apartment too. In fact, it should have been ruled wanton murder."

Mr Hankison was fired from the city's police department on June 23. A termination letter sent to him by Robert Schroeder, the interim Louisville Police Chief, said the white officer had violated procedures by showing "extreme indifference to the value of human life" when he "wantonly and blindly" shot 10 rounds of gunfire into Ms Taylor's apartment in March.

Sgt. Mattingly, Officer Cosgrove and the detective who sought the warrant, Joshua Jaynes, were placed on administrative reassignment after the shooting.

Kenneth Walker, Ms Taylor's boyfriend, opened fire when police burst in, hitting Officer Mattingly.

Walker was charged with attempted murder of a police officer, but prosecutors later dropped the charge. He told police he heard knocking but did not know who was coming into the home and fired in self-defense.

Earlier this month the city settled a lawsuit against the three officers brought by Tamika Palmer, Ms Taylor's mother, agreeing to pay her $12 million and enact police reforms.

The city of Louisville has introduced a number of reforms in policing since the March killing, including banning the use of no-knock warrants.