Louisville Metro Council passes Breonna's Law, banning no-knock warrants

The Louisville Metro Council unanimously voted Thursday night to ban the use of no-knock warrants, in honor of Breonna Taylor.

Under the new ordinance, called Breonna's Law, officers executing warrants must also have their body cameras turned on five minutes before serving a warrant and are not allowed to turn them off until five minutes after finishing. Earlier in the day, Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said he will file legislation to ban no-knock warrants nationwide.

Taylor, 26, was killed on March 13 after Louisville Metro Police officers entered her apartment on a no-knock warrant as part of a narcotics investigation. Thinking intruders were inside the apartment, her boyfriend fired a warning shot. The officers returned fire, hitting Taylor eight times. No drugs were found inside the apartment.

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With a no-knock warrant, police officers identify themselves only after they gain entrance to a building. The Louisville Metro Police officers said they announced themselves, but Taylor's boyfriend and neighbors have disputed their account. On Twitter, Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said he will sign Breonna's Law "as soon as it hits my desk. I suspended use of these warrants indefinitely last month, and wholeheartedly agree with Council that the risk to residents and officers with this kind of search outweigh any benefit."

Taylor was an emergency room tech, and prior to Thursday night's vote, her mother, Tamika Palmer, told Louisville Metro Council members that all her daughter wanted to do was "save lives, so it's important this law passes because with that, she'll get to continue to do that, even in her death."