Fear and loathing in the LMPD?
The LMPD Consent Decree Series, Post 7 - The Ghost of Law-loss Future takes you around the bend
Continuing on in our “Christmas Carol” analogy, the Ghost of Law-loss Future guides you to a frightening scene— The Consent Decree (CD) among Louisville Metro, LMPD and the Department of Justice (DOJ) has been negotiated and confirmed!
We see distressed police officers who are confident that they followed the department rules, and they are insulted and hurt that anyone would consider them to be racist. They know that the traffic stops they executed were for the public good, and they know that those who will suffer most from federal control of their policies are the poor in neighborhoods with higher crime rates. Small cities and areas with private police protection have hired many excellent officers who no longer wanted to work for the LMPD.
Crime is escalating— police are hesitant to use what may be perceived as ‘excessive force.’ So they look the other way, afraid of termination. Murders, rapes, thefts and property damage are growing worse. Taxes are going up to pay for hiring people to oversee and adjudicate the new normal.
The federal government has introduced technologies for surveillance, facial recognition and early warning systems, just like in the Minority Report movie. Costs are skyrocketing with more data collection, reports, court hearings, and— etc.
The ‘Defund the Police’ movement is working hard to convince Louisville to just reduce the size of the police force— Move responsibilities for traffic enforcement and homeless oversight to other departments; use fewer weapons, they say. This will save money.
Having a Consent Decree does NOT prevent Louisville from defunding the police!
The Law lost was (would be?) our implicit contract with our Local Police. The image is a screenshot from a video that explains the constitutional design for police to be answerable to local communities, and not controlled by the federal government.
On October 10 the Courier-Journal described the Consent Decree as ‘almost certain’. The mayor has said the negotiation is imminent.
So, what is the hold up? Will the DOJ wait until after the Brett Hankison trial that begins on October 30 and may last up to three weeks? Will Brett’s trial become a focal point of the mainstream media to illustrate why Louisville needs a CD? Can we yet avoid a CD in Louisville Metro? We will soon find out.
There are many legal briefs filed to organize the trial, and taken together with the 1.6 million documents provided by the DOJ for ‘discovery,’ we might call this an ‘excessive farce’— Just kidding!
Count the number of KUDOS in Brett’s personnel file!
In this series I have encouraged citizens to support Brett financially in his time of need. Thank you to his excellent attorneys who deserve our support.
Brett’s LMPD personnel file holds a letter of appreciation in both 2003 and 2004, and 44 letters of commendation, including nine in 2016 and three in 2019, the year before he was removed from the LMPD.
Many believe he should not have fired through the window. Or, was it a door? Much has been written. Remember, the false narrative is a strong narcotic to your perception. Remember, a jury of Brett’s peers found him innocent of wanton endangerment, and the charges against him were expunged (removed). Obviously, the evidence and testimony during the Jefferson Co. Circuit Court disproved the DOJ’s charges that Brett deprived Taylor, her boyfriend, and three neighbors of their constitutional rights… (see post).
Role of the Church
The final posts of this series will be devoted to evaluating what the role of the church could be at this time in our city and society. Following that I hope to start a series on the Brett Hankison trial. Thank you for reading, and please share this post.