Louisville mayor says outside supervision of police reform deal is ‘important’ however judge rules

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Mayor Craig Greenberg said it's "important" for an outside group to scrutinize the progress of Louisville's police reform deal even if a judge doesn't move forward with a court-enforced agreement.

An independent monitor — typically a collection of law and policing experts — would track the Louisville Metro Police Department's compliance with the sweeping pact the city reached late last year with the U.S. Department of Justice to address allegations of misconduct.

The agreement, called a consent decree, awaits action in federal court that would ensure that LMPD fulfill its promises or face possible contempt charges. But U.S. District Court Judge Benjamin Beaton expressed concerns about whether there needs to be court involvement in enforcing the agreement.

Greenberg told reporters Friday that "some form of monitoring" is vital to the success of the consent decree regardless of whether the court approves it.

When pressed on whether he believes that role should be inside or outside Metro government, he said "I think that having a third-party monitor involved in some capacity is an important part of this."

Greenberg noted that LMPD already has begin implementing some of the consent decree's recommendations. "As we seek to continue to find every possible way to strengthen the trust between the entire community and LMPD, having a third party involved in some way to validate it, to monitor the improvements that are being made, and to report on the data to provide that transparency to the public -- I believe having a third party involved in some way is important."

Under a court-ordered decree, Metro government would spend no more than $1.475 million annually for the independent monitor for an initial two-year term.

Earlier this week, the city and the Justice Department temporarily halted their effort to hire the monitor while they work to meet a deadline for Beaton's questions.

In 2023, the Justice Department concluded that Louisville police and Metro government for years allegedly engaged in practices that violated the U.S. Constitution and federal law, including excessive use of force and searches based on invalid warrants.

The investigation began after the 2020 police killing of Breonna Taylor, which prompted both local and national criticism of the police department and triggered months of protests. The federal probe cited 63 different incidents of alleged misconduct.

The city and Justice Department negotiated for nine months before agreeing to the consent decree in December.

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