In August 2022, the Justice Department charged the pair in connection with preparing and approving a search warrant affidavit tied to a narcotics investigation that allegedly contained false and misleading statements, omitted key facts and was not supported by probable cause.
U.S. District Senior Judge Charles Simpson III dismissed felony deprivation of rights under the color of law charges against former detective Joshua Jaynes and former Sgt. Kyle Meany in an order Thursday.
While the original indictment stated the offense involved the use of a dangerous weapon and resulted in Taylor’s death, which would have bumped up the potential penalty to life in prison, Simpson ruled that part of the indictment be stricken. Now, if convicted of that count, Meany and Jaynes face no more than a year in prison.