(CNN) Myles Cosgrove, one of the Louisville Metro Police officers involved in the 2020 shooting of Breonna Taylor, was recently hired by the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, Cosgrove’s attorney told CNN.
The move prompted the family of Breonna Taylor to release a statement expressing “outrage” and “disappointment” the officer who fired the fatal shot in the botched raid was hired by a sheriff’s office just 50 miles away- on from Louisville.
Cosgrove — the detective whose bullet ultimately killed Taylor according to the Kentucky Attorney General — began working for the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office on April 20, Sheriff Ryan Gosser told CNN affiliate WAVE.
The sheriff told WAVE that his office did a normal background check before hiring Cosgrove, and pointed out that Cosgrove was never charged.
Gosser said Cosgrove brings experience that will be beneficial to the county, WAVE reported.
Cosgrove’s attorney, Scott Miller, said his client was a scapegoat for Taylor’s shooting death.
“He’s been cleared by a state grand jury, a federal grand jury,” he said, adding, “His actions that night, are what police officers are trained to react to when they’re under fire,” he said. Miller. “We provided expert testimony that said he was able to obtain adequate target identification and target isolation. The city did not provide any expert testimony. They have no policy regarding that.”
Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron said Cosgrove was justified because Taylor’s boyfriend fired at the officers first.
The Louisville Metro Police Department initially terminated Detective Cosgrove in January 2021 for using deadly force to fire 16 rounds at Taylor’s home and failing to activate his body camera, according to a copy of his letter of termination.
In December 2021, the Louisville Metro Police Merit Board upheld the decision to fire Cosgrove by a 5-2 vote, in a decision made after several days of hearings.
Last November, the Kentucky Law Enforcement Council voted not to revoke Cosgrove’s state peace officer certification according to Louisville television station WHAS.
The decision means he can apply for other state law enforcement jobs.
“The Kentucky Law Enforcement Council, made up of citizens, mayors, executive judges, statewide police officers as well as educators, also voted that he should not lose his police certification. . [and] should be allowed to be a police officer in Kentucky,” Miller said.
Sam Aguiar, who represents Taylor’s family, said he was “disgusted” when he heard about the hiring.
“I was disappointed and disgusted to hear that he was hired by an agency. We had one of the best ballistics experts in the country review Cosgrove’s actions at length. He concluded without a doubt that Cosgrove shot Breonna while she was unarmed, who fell to the ground. , and to the ground,” said Aguiar.
“Although Carroll County is desperate for a body to fill a position, due diligence should have prevented this hire from happening. for officers just because of the badge.”
When reached, the Louisville Metro Police Department told CNN it had no comment.
A protest was called in response to Cosgrove’s appointment outside the Carrollton sheriff’s office on Monday, the Carrollton Police Department confirmed to CNN. By noon, CNN affiliate WAVE reported, a low turnout for most Louisville residents.
“We are activating our plans regarding civil protests. Our agency is coordinating a response with other agencies serving our city,” Carrollton Police Chief Michael Willhoite said in a statement to CNN. .
Carrollton Mayor Robb W. Adams addressed the controversial hiring on the city’s Facebook page.
“As many of you know, there has been some turmoil in recent days related to a recent hire at the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office. We understand that there are groups planning to come and exercise their right to assemble and peacefully protest this decision,” Adams said. “The City of Carrollton is closely monitoring the situation and has plans in place to ensure everyone’s safety, although we do not anticipate any issues.”
Meanwhile, Cosgrove, who has already started working for the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, will have to work two more years to collect his full retirement benefits, according to his attorney.
“He has the right to pursue a profession. And he pursued one for 20 years and did it honorably, until this point that he ended up in Louisville as a scapegoat for this whole situation,” said Miller.
CNN’s Laura James contributed to this report.