Family members say missing 49-year-old Louisville woman found shot to death

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The search for a missing woman in Louisville has come to a tragic end.

Family members identified 49-year-old Tasha White as the person found "obviously deceased" on Newport Road off Fegenbush Lane in the Buechel neighborhood with a gunshot wound.

"She was the life of the party everywhere she went," her sister, Jazmin Jackson, described her.

Family said that White was last seen on April 27 in Louisville's Park Hill neighborhood. Loved ones said they found cameras at White's home off, which is unusual. Her keys were missing, but her car, wallet, ID and cell phone were left behind at the home.

Members of White's family took their concerns to LMPD to file a missing persons report on May 1.

"The things that we were trying to tell LMPD, they wouldn't listen to us or nothing like that," her father, Arthur Jackson, said. "We knew something was wrong because we know her personality."

Earlier this week, on Monday, WDRB News contacted LMPD to inquire about the missing persons report for Tasha Smith. A spokesperson for the department replied, "As of this writing, I do not have a Missing Persons report or any information from our records regarding what has been shared on social media about Ms. White."

Two days later, police responded to the 4400 block of Newport Road around 4:15 p.m. on a reported person down, LMPD Spokesperson Dwight Mitchell said in a statement.

Nearly three hours later, following another inquiry from WDRB News, LMPD confirmed that a Missing Persons report was filed on May 1.

When WDRB News asked LMPD why a spokesperson originally said there was no missing persons report for Tasha White, the department responded that the inquiry did not match the legal name 'Latasha White' that the family provided when they filed the report.

"The dots just are not connecting," said Councilwoman Tammy Hawkins, D-District 1.

After receiving numerous calls and seeing social media posts, Hawkins announced a Friday press conference to discuss the disappearance of White.

Hawkins is pressing on the timeline and gaps in communication from police.

"This lady had been missing for this amount of time, and LMPD did not give anyone knowledge that there was a missing persons report until my office contacted the detective personally to find out, before I did do the press conference, if there was a missing persons report," she said.

LMPD's Homicide Unit is handling the investigation, but has no suspects and has made no arrests. Police are looking for any potential witnesses or video from surveillance cameras in the area.

"LMPD did not listen to what we were trying to tell them," Arthur Jackson said. "Maybe we could've found her sooner or, you know, we could've done something sooner, instead of just sitting around for seven days."

Anyone with information is asked to call LMPD's Crime Tip Line at 502-574-LMPD (5673). Tips can also be submitted anonymously through the department's online crime tip portal by clicking here.

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