The trial date for two of the four former Louisville Metro Police officers facing federal charges for their roles in the deadly 2020 raid on Breonna Taylor’s home is up in the air.
The United States Department of Justice indicted Joshua Jaynes and Kyle Meany in August for their roles in securing the search warrant for Taylor’s apartment. Their trial was initially set for next month.
However, federal prosecutors have already filed hundreds of thousands of pages of documents and evidence — and there’s more to come. The defendants recently asked a judge to declare their case complex and give them more time to prepare.
This week, U.S. District Court Judge Charles Simpson ruled to delay proceedings. While he didn’t set a new trial date, he instead called for a status hearing in February.
"The United States has produced 350,000 pages of documents in discovery, along with audio and visual recordings. They represented to the court yesterday that they have another 350,000 to go, so, the judge remanded the trial date and gave us a return-to-court date, or status conference, in February," said Thomas Clay, Jaynes' attorney.
Citing publicity and media attention, Jaynes and Meany also requested moving their trial outside of Louisville. But that discussion has been tabled until they return to court in the new year.
Jaynes and Meany pleaded not guilty in federal court soon after they were indicted.
Former detective Kelly Goodlett, who was also charged by the DOJ, pleaded guilty and said she conspired with Jaynes to falsify information in the search warrant application. Meany was their supervisor.
