Attorney defends LMPD officers disciplined after immigration-related camera searches

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The attorney representing two Louisville Metro Police officers disciplined in connection with improper immigration-related searches of a license plate camera system said his clients were swept up in a breakdown involving federal agencies, internal communication and unclear policies.

Attorney F. Todd Lewis represents Lt. Jeremy Ruoff and Detective Wesley Troutman, both of whom faced discipline after an agent with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration used Troutman's login credentials to access the city's Flock Safety camera system and conducted searches labeled with immigration-related terms.

Lewis said Troutman, who has long been assigned to a DEA task force, shared his password with the agent to the system as part of routine cooperation between law enforcement agencies working criminal cases.

LMPD said this week that DEA agent, identified in internal investigation documents as Marcus White, then used the login to "search the system using immigration-related terms."

"It was known fairly quickly that it wasn't Detective Troutman doing this," Lewis said. "The reality was that never happened — not one single time."

Lewis placed much of the blame on what he described as an unexpected shift at the federal level.

"The DEA is not tasked with enforcing immigration," Lewis said. "You can go to their webpage, and it clearly says the mission statement is the enforcement of the drug laws of the United States. You will not find the word 'immigration' in DEA material anywhere."

Troutman was suspended two days with no pay for sharing the information, Ruoff was suspended five days with no pay for "providing inappropriate guidance" to Troutman, and Assistant Chief Lt. Col. Nick Owen was demoted to lieutenant for "failing to follow direct orders and not providing relevant information to the Chief."

Lewis said both officers he represents accepted discipline to bring the matter to an end rather than pursue prolonged appeals.

"There just comes a time, as there does in many cases in law, where an individual decides 'I would rather just end this thing than have it continue,"' he said, adding they're back on the job.

"Addressing issues directly, asking tough questions and making difficult decisions are the fundamentals of leadership," Chief Paul Humphrey said in a written statement Tuesday. "They are essential to accountability and trust. When an issue was raised, we investigated it, took corrective action, and reinforced the standards and expectations for LMPD. Those involved have had excellent careers and I expect nothing less from them going forward."

The DEA said in a written statement Tuesday its agents "use every available tool" to perform their duties, which regularly involved using information shared from other law enforcement agencies.

"In this particular instance, the agent involved was not aware that the use of Flock data for immigration investigations and enforcement operations was a violation of the City of Louisville's policies," a DEA spokesperson said. "At the end of the day, as federal law enforcement officers, DEA Special Agents have a duty to investigate and arrest individuals who violate federal laws and we will continue to meet that obligation with professionalism and compassion."

LMPD said its internal investigation found no evidence anyone with the department participated in civil immigration investigation or enforcement.

"(Troutman) gave permission to use his password for criminal investigations," Lewis said. "Had no idea that someone at the top of the federal government was going to come along and rope in DEA and other criminal agencies into this immigration sweep."

Since this happened, LMPD said it's made the following changes:

Implemented two-factor authentication for the Flock system
Tightened rules to require a valid National Incident-Based Reporting System code for every search, ensuring each search is tied to a criminal investigation
Activated filters on Flock data, blocking any other law enforcement agency from conducting an immigration-related search
Revised internal LMPD immigration policy to apply it to all other agencies requesting assistance from LMPD
Strengthened its password-sharing policy

"These steps reflect LMPD's commitment to accountability, data integrity, and ensuring policies are followed," the department said.

Lewis said those restrictions have now been implemented but should have been in place years earlier, given existing city ordinances limiting immigration enforcement.

"It should have been implemented years ago when the Flock camera system was instituted, because we have a city ordinance that does restrict immigration activities from all of our city employees," he said.

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