4 arrested at a Black Lives Matter march in Louisville following the Kentucky Derby
Four people were arrested at a Black Lives Matter march in Louisville, Kentucky, according to police, shortly after the Kentucky Derby was held at Churchill Downs a few miles away.
Two men and two women were arrested, according to the Louisville Metro Police Department. Police did not provide the names of those arrested or the charges against them.
Police live-streamed videos from the scene on Facebook, which show demonstrators marching and carrying Black Lives Matter banners. During one arrest, police carried one handcuffed woman as demonstrators objected. A police officer said the woman refused to walk on her own.
Over the last year, activists in Louisville have protested and demanded justice for the police killing of Breonna Taylor, including at last September’s Kentucky Derby. The 26-year-old emergency room technician was shot and killed by Louisville police officers in her apartment during a botched police raid in March 2020.
No officer was directly charged with her death. One former detective, Brett Hankison, was indicted last year on three counts of wanton endangerment for allegedly firing blindly through a door and window, with bullets entering an adjacent apartment where a pregnant woman, a man and a child were home, according to the state attorney general.
Attorney General Merrick Garland last week announced a Justice Department investigation into the practices of the Louisville Police Department.
The protest wasn’t the only show of ongoing tension related to Taylor’s killing this weekend. At the Kentucky Derby, video from CNN affiliate WLKY showed a plane flying a banner overhead that said, “Protect Black Women. Divest from Police.”
In addition, a horse named after Taylor ran its way into the winner’s circle on Thursday in a Derby Week race at Churchill Downs. The 3-year-old filly, named Breonna, is owned by JS Stables, LLC — a thoroughbred racing operation run by attorney Sam Aguiar, who represents Taylor’s family, and his wife Janelle.
