LOUSIVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The man accused of shooting a police officer in Shawnee Park complained to a judge Friday morning, claiming that he'd had no access to a phone or medical care while in jail -- but the new head of Louisville's jail says he's making sure Lee is getting the care he needs.

Herbert Lee, 30, appeared in Jefferson District Court in a wheelchair. There were bandages on his arms. His bond was set at $1 million.

Lee appeared on a long list of charges -- and Jefferson District Court Judge Josephine Layne Buckner entered not guilty pleas on his behalf for each of them, per standard procedure.

At one point, when Judge Buckner asked if he was going to hire an attorney, Lee had heated words.

"If I'm ever able to use a phone, I'll get me a lawyer," he said. "But they won't even let me use the phone. Medical is barely looking at me."

"Alright, we're gonna talk about phone privileges," Judge Buckner said, promising to discuss it after the hearing.

"I ain't got none," Lee retorted.

"Okay," the judge said. "We're gonna get you the phone after you get done here."

"Thank you!" Lee replied.

"So do you want to hire an attorney?" Judge Buckner asked.

"I'm gonna reach out to someone."

At one point during the arraignment, Lee became frustrated and stood up from his wheelchair.

"Ma'am, just listen to what I'm telling you," he said, showing what appeared to be a gunshot wound to his upper arm. "Look, I got open wounds. They didn't even come to check my wounds or nothing. Like, I'm open all over, and they're not even coming to change bandages or nothing. I got here at 2-something yesterday. They didn't even do nothing."

"I'll talk to you about all that after we get through the paperwork," Judge Buckner said.

"I'm saying though, my body is in pain!" Lee said. "I could care less about this -- what's going on."

In an interview Friday afternoon, Jerry Collins, the new director of Louisville Metro Corrections, said he is making sure Lee gets the medical care he needs.

"As soon as he came out of court, he saw the doctor, and I can assure you, I made clear to our medical and our staff that, yes, yes, he is receiving medical attention as-needed and he is on the medical floor right now," Collins said.

Lee was booked into Louisville Metro Corrections about 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, which was just minutes before police released three minutes of edited body camera footage of the shooting at the park on July 10. 

Lee was shot and injured in the exchange of gunfire with police. He had been in the hospital until he was booked into the jail. The extent of his injuries has not been released by law enforcement. Police only said his injuries were to his "extremities." 

According to police, officers at the Dirt Bowl basketball game spotted Lee and attempted to serve warrants. Police said Lee fired a shot and hit Officer Joshua Pickering in the chest, but he wasn't injured because the bullet hit his bullet-resistant vest. 

In the body cam video released by LMPD, police fire more than a dozen shots toward Lee at a portion of the park that borders residential homes in the video. LMPD officers Pickering, Richard Williams, Daniel Burnett, Joel Voelker and Nicholas Hollkamp were involved in the shooting.

Lee has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 2008, when he was convicted of crashing a stolen car during a high-speed police chase. Four teenagers in the car were killed. Lee was the only survivor. He was convicted by a jury in October 2010 on four counts of manslaughter in the deaths of Jamar, Demar and Marc Claybrooks and Aaron Shields.

Lee served less than three years. In 2017, Louisville Metro Government agreed to pay $1.6 million to settle a lawsuit filed by the families of four boys who died in the crash.

Lee faces several new charges related to the July 10 police incident:

  • Receiving Stolen Property (firearm)
  • Restricted Ammunition
  • Attempted Murder Of A Police Officer
  • Possession Of A Handgun By A Convicted Felon
  • Fleeing/Evading 1st degree (on foot)

Lee had already been facing numerous charges including: 

  • Possession of a Handgun By a Convicted Felon
  • Theft By Unlawful Taking Firearm
  • Tampering With Physical Evidence
  • Receiving Stolen Property (Firearm)
  • Fleeing/Evading 1st degree (on foot)
  • Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument 2nd Degree
  • Theft By Deception
  • Probation Violation
  • Receiving Stolen Property
  • Wanton Endangerment 1st Degree
  • Violation of Emergency Protective Order
  • Harassment With Physical Contact

According to Lisa Lamb, a spokeswoman for the Kentucky Department of Corrections, Lee has a lengthy criminal history and has been in-and-out of prison. After his conviction for the deaths of four teenagers in a stolen car, Lee was granted probation on Feb. 23, 2011. That probation was revoked on July 27, 2012 and he was sentenced to one year on four counts of second-degree manslaughter, first-degree fleeing or evading police and receipt of stolen property in connection with that case.

Lamb said that, on March 12, 2013, while he was still behind bars, Lee was sentenced to three years on a charge of receipt of stolen property grater than $500 and less than $10,000.

On Nov. 14, 2013, Lamb said he was released under a program called "mandatory reentry supervision" (MRS). On Feb. 4, 2014, he violated the terms of MRS and was put back behind bars. Lamb said he was released on Jan. 1, 2019, after he served out this sentence.

On Dec. 5, 2019, Lee was sentenced to two years behind bars on a charge of receipt of stolen property greater than $500 and less than $10,000. He was released after he served out his sentence on June 1, 2020, according to Lamb.

On Jan. 5, 2021, Lee was sentenced to 365 days and released on supervision after he was charged with fourth-degree domestic violence assault, according to Lamb.

Lamb said that on May 12, 2022, a hearing was held to revoke Lee's supervision after he violated the terms.

LMPD investigators have asked anyone who witnessed what happened in Shawnee Park on July 10 to call (502) 574-LMPD (5673). 

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