LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A Louisville Metro Police officer who was shot in the face while supervising a construction site last year filed a lawsuit against the Kentucky Department of Corrections, claiming the man who shot him should have been in jail.
LMPD Officer Chris Lane was working the construction site on Interstate 264 in November when he was shot.
"He had his jaw wired shut," said Tad Thomas, the attorney who represents Lane. "The bullet actually went in his cheek and kind of went around his neck and lodged in the back of his neck."
Keyshaun Stewart is charged with that shooting and also shooting and killing Freddie O'Bannon, who was also working at that construction site.
Thomas said his client wants to uncover what went wrong at Probation and Parole and why Stewart was out on the street to begin with. Lane's lawsuit targets the Kentucky Department of Corrections and Stewart's parole officer, claiming negligence on their behalf.
In 2019, Stewart was sentenced to five years probation in Jefferson Circuit Court for Burglary, Possession of a Controlled Substance and Criminal Mischief.
Eight months later, Stewart was arrested in Davidson County, Tennessee, for Aggravated Assault and Arson.
The lawsuit states his probation officer never reported those new charges to Jefferson County.
"Once Chris got shot and this came to light and Mr. O'Bannon was murdered by someone who should not have been on the street, then finally probation/parole was forced to discuss the issue," Thomas said. "They were forced to publicly acknowledge they had a problem, and now they are trying to deal with the problem as quietly as possible."
Thomas said this would never have happened if Stewart was punished for the crimes he committed.
"We believe that if the probation officer had followed the policies and procedures and the regulations set forth for probation and parole, that this shooter would never have been on the street and Chris would not have been shot, and Mr. O'Bannon would still be alive today."
The lawsuit requests money for damages and a jury trial.
Thomas said Lane faces a long road to recovery and may never be a street officer again.
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