LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY — A federal judge dismissed charges against two former Louisville police officers who had been accused of falsifying the warrant used to enter Breonna Taylor's apartment the night she was shot to death by police. U.S. District Judge Charles Simpson issued a one-page ruling on Friday dismissing charges against Joshua Jaynes and Kyle Meany.

Federal prosecutors asked a judge last week to dismiss charges against Jaynes and Meany in the interest of justice. Prosecutors said the court had already removed some felony charges against the two in previous proceedings.

Jaynes was charged with conspiracy, falsification of records, and misdemeanor civil rights violations. Meany was charged with lying to federal investigators.

The warrant used to enter Taylor's apartment alleged she was receiving packages on behalf of her former boyfriend, who was a suspected drug dealer. The warrant document stated that Jaynes had confirmed with the postal service that packages for the ex-boyfriend were being sent to Taylor's apartment. Investigators later learned that Jaynes had not confirmed that information with the postal inspector.

Meany, a former police sergeant, signed off on the warrant to search Taylor's apartment. Jaynes was fired by the Louisville Police Department in 2021 for being untruthful about the warrant. Meany was fired from the department after he was charged in 2022.

Taylor's boyfriend fired one shot at police after they broke down the front door of her apartment with a battering ram. Police returned fire and struck Taylor multiple times in her hallway.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland announced charges against Jaynes and Meany in 2022 at a news conference in Louisville. "Breonna Taylor should still be alive today." Garland said the officers who shot Taylor were unaware of the false and misleading statements in the warrant.

The deaths of Taylor and George Floyd in Minnesota led to weeks of racial justice protests in the summer of 2020.