Iconic actor and activist George Clooney is known for voicing his opinion no matter how controversial it might be.
As a Kentucky native, Clooney was moved and angered by the killing of Breonna Taylor.
In early March, the 26-year-old African-American woman was fatally shot by three Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) officers — Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and Myles Cosgrove — as they were executing a search warrant.
The three officers claimed that they knocked on the door before forcing entry into her apartment in Louisville, Kentucky.
Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, who believed that intruders had entered his home, fired a gun at the officers. Taylor, who did not have a weapon, was shot five times.
In a shocking move, Louisville city officials paid Taylor’s family $12 million just days before announcing that Hankison, who was fired, was subsequently indicted not for Taylor’s fatal shooting, but on three counts of wanton endangerment for endangering a neighbor with his shots.
The other two other officers involved in the killing walked away scot-free.
During a press conference, Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who announced the grand jury decision, told celebrities to keep their unsolicited opinions to themselves.
Cameron stated: “There will be celebrities, influencers, and activists who have never lived in Kentucky who try to tell us how to feel, suggesting they understand the facts of this case, and that they know our community and the commonwealth better than we do. But they do not.”
Clooney defied the remarks made by Cameron and issued the following blistering statement on the matter.
He shared: “I was born and raised in Kentucky. Cut tobacco on the farms of Kentucky. Both my parents and my sister live in Kentucky. I own a home in Kentucky, and I was there last month. The justice system I was raised to believe in holds people responsible for their actions. Her name was Breonna Taylor, and she was shot to death in her bed by three white police officers, who will not be charged with any crime for her death. I know the community. I know the commonwealth. And I was taught in the schools and churches of Kentucky what is right and what is wrong. I’m ashamed of this decision.”
Clooney was praised by some for his powerful words and was slammed by others who deemed that he did not thoroughly study or follow the case to make an assessment.
Some backers said that he should have enlisted the help of his powerful attorney and wife Amal to avoid getting the facts wrong.
A critic slammed the Hollywood star by saying: “And what has he done about it? These Hollywood hypocrites are so annoying. Go buy another, Oscar, George.”
This naysayer replied: “It’s a shame, but the family accepted 12 million dollars for her killing.”
This social media user had this to say: “I don’t understand; look at the facts he shot at the police; first, he was a known drug dealer. They have a witness who says he heard the police ID themselves as officers. He even said they knocked …. smh, leave your wife do to lawyering stuff.”
A few others claimed that the statement confirms the rumors that Clooney has political ambitions.
This person revealed: “You are a ? George Clooney; next week, he will be running for president LOL.”
Mr. Clooney has long denied having political ambitions.
