92-year-old Kathryn Johnston knew how to hold her own. But on November 21, 2006, her quick instincts to protect herself during a break-in ended up being Atlanta police’s way to excuse shooting her to death – 39 times!
Right around dinnertime, the plainclothes officers uprooted the burglar bars on her door, then rammed into it, terrifying the elderly woman. When she fired once from her “rusty revolver” in self-defense, they killed her with dozens of gunshots, then handcuffed her bleeding body.
But why didn’t they just knock?
Police had what’s called a “no-knock” search warrant, to prevent suspects from having the time to escape or hide evidence after hearing a knock. It’s how Louisville, Kentucky police “disproportionately target Black residents,” and excused killing Breonna Taylor.
But these officers did more than just kill Johnston.
The Atlanta police later admitted to PLANTING drugs in her house after finding nothing incriminating there. Why? Because they were “under pressure to meet quotas for arrests and warrants.” Meanwhile, Kathryn Johnston laid dead on her own floor.
We can't trust police to keep our well-being and safety in mind if their motivations are to meet quotas without a care for the truth. Johnston's story reminds us that police will always sacrifice us when it gets down to the wire. When they "cut corners,” we die!