Jordan Fisher
Kenneth Walker, the boyfriend of Breonna Taylor, has opened up about the emotional moment he discovered his late girlfriend had been shot by police.
On Oct. 12, Walker sat down with hosts Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith and Adrienne Banfield Norris on Facebook Watch’s Red Table Talk, where he shared, for the first time, a chilling recording of his 911 call from the day of the shooting. Outside of the police, Walker is the only other witness that saw the events that transpired leading up to Taylor’s death.
“I don’t know what happened. Somebody kicked in the door and shot my girlfriend,” Walker can be heard shouting on the frantic call, before the operator asks for Taylor’s age. Moments later, Walker bursts into uncontrollable tears when he realizes Taylor has been shot. “Help! Bre, God, No!” he cries before the heartbreaking clip ends.
Kenneth Walker talks about the tragic moment he found out Breonna Taylor died
Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old EMS worker, was fatally shot in her Louisville, Kentucky apartment on March 13, 2020, when at least seven police officers forced entry into her apartment as part of a drug raid investigation. Unaware that the police were conducting a raid, Walker fired his gun toward the door out of self defense.
During the interview, Walker said he found out Taylor died after he was taken into custody and questioned by police.
“Now I’m knowing what they’re probably accusing me of at this point, so I’m scared,” he explained. “They’re trying to ask me questions about me, and I’m like, ‘Listen, I’ll get to that. Where is Breonna? Is Breonna OK? Is she alive?’”
“Nobody is answering my questions,” he continued. “So I had to find out what happened on the news, sitting in jail. They didn’t say her name, but they said a woman was killed. That’s how I found out.”
Walker was charged with attempted murder of a police officer and assault, but the charges were later dropped in May 2020. Louisville police have not publicly commented on his latest statements.
Social media reacts to the chilling 911 call
After the emotional clip went viral, people shared a ton of reactions to the chilling 911 call on social media.
“Idk if i can listen,” wrote one user. “It’ll always be Rest In Peace Breonna Taylor. She could of been any of us.”
“Jesus! Every time I see his face, I think about his trauma,” another user wrote, empathizing with Walker’s pain.
“Imagine watching your girlfriend suffer that way?! For NOTHING. And there be no justice. Such a sad, helpless situation man.”
Unfortunately, some users criticized Walker for opening up about the emotional moment on Red Table Talk.
“Damn I wish he woulda have taken this to a more reputable journalistic venue,” @iam_jordancampbell wrote in response to the clip on Instagram. A few users were quick to step in and applaud Jada for amplifying Breonna’s story.
“Y’all wanna find any reason to dog jada instead of focusing on the topic at hand. Get over yourselves. She is keeping her story alive,” wrote @tak.nation. While another user chimed in:
“IT TOOK OVER 2 years for them to be charged with her murder you think they’ll give a damn abt his story. Thank Jada for giving him the platform!!”
In August, four former Louisville police officers were federally charged with violating Taylor’s civil rights in the botched raid that ultimately led to her death. Kentucky detectives Kelly Goodlett and Joshua Jaynes were charged with falsifying the affidavit used to conduct the reckless raid. In a separate indictment, Brett Hankison was charged with using excessive force while executing the search warrant.
Prior to the episode airing, Jada Pinkett Smith sat down with CNN’s Laura Coates to explain why she felt it was important to invite Kenneth and Breonna’s family on the show to re-share their emotional story. Listen to what she had to say down below.
Watch the full Red Table Talk interview here
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