LMPD officers face misdemeanor charges for failing to help Louisville woman who was later murdered

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Two Louisville Metro Police officers are facing misdemeanor charges months after a woman was murdered in Louisville's Parkland neighborhood.

According to an LMPD spokeswoman, Officer Kiersten Holman and Officer Cody Luckett were served with criminal citations on Friday. Police say they were charged with failing to provide assistance required from law enforcement in connection with the January death of 33-year-old Amanda Berry.

Berry was found dead in the basement of a home in the 3200 block of Virginia Avenue just after midnight on Thursday, Jan. 30.

"It was apparent the person had been deceased for quite a long period of time," a spokesperson for LMPD stated at the time. "And because of that, it was difficult to determine what (if any) injuries occurred."

Days later, police arrested 38-year-old William L. Sloss, Berry's live-in boyfriend, on charges of murder and abuse of a corpse in connection with Berry's death.

According to the arrest report, the murder took place on Jan. 30. Police say Sloss and Berry were in a relationship,and were living in the Virginia Avenue home where her body was found. Neighbors told police that they had seen Sloss beat Berry on several occasions throughout the course of their relationship, and when the neighbors stopped seeing Berry, they started asking questions.

Police said on one occasion, someone asked Sloss where Berry was, and he replied, "I got rid of her."

Berry's family eventually reported her missing, and police went to his Virginia Avenue home. Police say Sloss told a witness, over the phone, that he put her body in a plastic storage tote in the back of the basement and covered it with trash and other debris in an effort to hide it. Police found her body in the place Sloss described, according to the arrest report.

According to a spokesperson for LMPD, Ofcs. Holman and Luckett are now charged with misdemeanors in connection with the case, based on a prior incident that took place almost a month before the murder.

"The charges stem from a Public Integrity Unit investigation into the actions of Officers Kierstin Holman and Cody Luckett during an encounter with domestic violence victim Amanda Berry on December 26, 2019," the spokesman said in a statement. "In January, Ms. Berry was murdered. The charges allege the officers failed to provide Ms. Berry the proper assistance during the December encounter, which was discovered by an LMPD supervisor during a review of the Berry case for the Fatality Review panel held for all domestic violence homicides."

Police say both Holman and Luckett were placed on administrative reassignment in March. Their case will now move to the Professional Standards Unit for a review of potential internal policy violations.

This story will be updated.

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