Louisville Agrees to Reform Law Enforcement Under Pact With DOJ

A woman visits the memorial for Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Ky., on Sept. 11, 2020. Bryan Woolston/Reuters

Louisville, Kentucky, has entered into a contract with the Department of Justice (DOJ) in which it agrees to resolve its police department’s alleged constitutional violations.

On Thursday, the DOJ announced the agreement, which is court-enforceable and calls for heightened accountability and transparency.

The DOJ opened an investigation into the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) in 2021, a year after the shooting death of Breonna Taylor when police executed a search warrant for drug trafficking on March 18, 2020, at approximately 1 a.m.

Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, was a suspect in the drug trafficking investigation.

After banging on the door, LMPD entered using a battering ram. Walker, who maintained that he wasn’t aware law enforcement was conducting a raid on his home, allegedly opened fire on the police first, prompting the return fire that killed Taylor.

Legal challenges and charges followed, as well as Black Lives Matter demonstrations centered around the death of Taylor and George Floyd at the hands of what the protesters said were racist law enforcement tactics.

The DOJ’s LMPD probe led to findings alleging that the department had engaged in constitutional violations, including the use of excessive force, illegal search and seizures, and racial discrimination.

“Nearly five years after Breonna Taylor was shot and killed in her own home in the middle of the night by Louisville Metro Police Department officers, the Justice Department has secured an agreement to enact significant, systemic reforms to policing in Louisville,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said. “This agreement addresses the serious violations of federal law that we uncovered during our pattern or practice investigation and puts the city of Louisville and its police department on a path to lasting reform.”

Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg issued a statement on the agreement on Thursday.

“The most basic responsibility of government is to keep our people safe while protecting constitutional rights and treating everyone fairly,” Greenberg said. “As mayor, I promised to uphold that responsibility, and I have.”

LMPD Chief Paul Humphrey said the department is already “well on our way” to implementing reforms found in the contract.

“I felt comfortable signing this because our officers will have clear guidance and goals to meet, the DOJ can’t move the goalposts, and our officers can focus on good police work, not paperwork,” Humphrey said.

The DOJ’s findings follow several other probes into whether local law enforcement is violating the constitutional rights of its citizens, including Memphis, New Orleans, and New Jersey.

In each case, the city governments agreed to work with the DOJ on reforms.