LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- When Louisville Metro Police began an investigation in 2022 into allegations of sexual misconduct by supervisors at an August 2020 "adult pool" party with officers, the police union filed a lawsuit that shut the investigation down.
The party, at the home of Maj. Shannon Lauder and her husband, Lt. Jeff Lauder, has come under public scrutiny in recent weeks after an officer filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against the department and the Lauders, claiming they were "grossly inappropriate" in making sexual comments and advances toward her.
While Sgt. Lauren Carby didn't initially file a complaint with the department about the alleged misconduct, she told several officers about it, including Maj. Mindy Vance, the commander of the department's peer support team.
Vance heard about the allegations during a peer support meeting, and encouraged Carby to report the Lauders' alleged contact. When she declined, Vance contacted the head of LMPD's internal investigation unit and reported the alleged harassment and misconduct, which prompted an investigation.
But in 2023, the River City Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 614 filed a lawsuit against the city after most investigative interviews were complete, arguing that the investigation violated the collective bargaining agreement because the complaint was based on private information discussed as part of the peer support process.
A Jefferson Circuit Court judge in April issued a temporary restraining order halting the investigation.
In response, Carby filed her own formal complaint in May 2024 and a new investigation into the Lauders is pending.
Now Carby has filed a motion to intervene in the ongoing FOP lawsuit, arguing that the "confidentiality privilege at-issue in the above-styled action is held solely" by Carby and the FOP is not protecting her by trying to stop the investigation.
"According to the law, you can waive the support peer privilege," said attorney Sara Collins, who is representing Carby. "We want to intervene to have Lauren's voice heard. Her interests have not been represented."
In the motion to intervene, Collins wrote that the FOP never asked Carby whether she wanted a lawsuit filed on her behalf or if she wanted to waive her peer support privilege.
"(The) FOP usurped Lauren's peer support privilege, used it to advocate against her interests, and failed to use it in protecting her," Collins wrote in the motion filed Thursday. "Interestingly, the only beneficiaries of FOP's fight to end the PSU investigation and conceal the documents and information gained there are Lt. Jeff Lauder and Major Shannon Lauder, the perpetrators who victimized Lauren Carby."
An attorney for Shannon Lauder has not returned messages seeking comment and Jeff Lauder could not be reached.
A message left for the FOP was not immediately returned.
The FOP's lawsuit claimed LMPD failed to keep confidential information from a confidential peer support session and (Carby) was not told an internal complaint was being filed on her behalf.
"In other words, the Peer Support Participant was lied to and told that the officer was participating in a confidential Peer Support Session and when the officer opened up, without being told that disclosing information would or could be made public, LMPD then took that information and published it to others," according to the FOP lawsuit. "LMPD's failure to keep the Peer Support Participant's confidential information confidential has resulted in multiple Professional Standards investigations into the conduct of other LMPD employees."
In a ruling granting the temporary restraining order, Judge Ann Bailey Smith mentioned a letter stating that (Carby) did not want to participate in the investigation.
But Carby claims that while she was initially hesitant to get involved between Vance and the Lauders, she had always maintained she would "cooperate with any investigation as required," according to the motion. And Carby did participate in the investigation before it was shut down.
Smith ruled "LMPD's disregard of this requirement would undoubtedly lead to a 'chilling effect' among those FOP members who might otherwise seek counseling."
The judge will hear the motion to intervene on July 22.
Carby's lawsuit, filed June 20, claims Shannon and Jeff Lauder, bragged about their sexual exploits with others in the department and in August 2020 had an "adult only" pool party with members of the Domestic Violence Unit and sex crimes detectives, among others, where Jeff Lauder made sexual advances toward Carby.
Shannon Lauder has herself complained in May that she was sexually harassed by a major, prompting Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg to seek Metro Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel's resignation, at least in part, for how the chief "handled a workplace sexual harassment allegation."
In audio of a May 22 meeting with her command staff, the chief promoted a male officer to lieutenant colonel right after Lauder had accused him of sexual harassment.
At the same time Carby and another female officer have filed recent lawsuits alleging sexual misconduct in the department.
Also last month, Officer Christine Silk claimed in a lawsuit she was sexually harassed by two male supervisors during her first year on the job, with one sending her a picture of his penis.
Carby accuses Lauder and her husband of sexual misconduct, alleging the two openly talked about their extramarital relationships and Shannon Lauder told her to come back to the pool party when she tried to leave following her husband's advances.
When Carby went back to the Lauder home, according to the lawsuit, Jeff Lauder was waiting. He led her upstairs where Shannon Lauder was sitting on a couch, "highly intoxicated, and attempting to locate" a detective under her command who she was seen kissing earlier at the party.
Shannon Lauder allegedly told Carby that she "had her blessing to engage in a relationship with Jeff," according to the lawsuit.
When Shannon Lauder left the room, Jeff Lauder tried to kiss Carby, the suit claims. Carby allegedly pushed him away and left the home.
Shannon Lauder apologized the next day, telling Carby she had "overshared," according to the suit.
The department initiated an investigation in October 2022 into these allegations and "we are extremely frustrated we could not reach a conclusion to this investigation as the court sided with the FOP to temporarily stop the investigation from proceeding," according to a previous statement form police.
An attorney for Shannon Lauder, Jared Smith, previously said in a statement that the allegations are "unfounded."
"The Lauders have dedicated their careers to honorable policing within LMPD for 16 years," he said. "The timing of Carby's lawsuit appears opportunistic, based on other recent sexual harassment claims against LMPD. Her allegations are unfounded. LMPD has improperly investigated this internally going back years, as cited by a recent ruling that stems from a suit filed by the FOP. This case is an example of a botched internal investigation that continued based on rumor and innuendo."
Retired FBI agent David Beyer is leading an independent investigation into the chief's handling of Shannon Lauder's allegation. A separate, independent investigation will look into the harassment claim itself. Beyer previously investigated Metro Corrections and sexual harassment allegations at TARC at the request of the Metro Council.
Deputy Chief Paul Humphrey is leading the department in an "acting chief" role. Humphrey joined LMPD in 2006 and spent several years as a 1st and 6th division officer in the Newburg and Russell neighborhoods. In 2010, he joined the SWAT team and became the commander of the team in 2017.
This story will be updated.
Related Stories:
- LAWSUIT: LMPD officer sexually harassed at 'adult pool party' by superiors in open marriage
- Louisville police recruit was sent nude photo, sexually harassed by 2 supervisors, lawsuit says
- LMPD chief had 'deeply concerning' response to major's sexual harassment allegation, attorney says
Copyright 2024 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.
