LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky State Police are leading the investigation after a man was shot and killed by Louisville Metro Police during a traffic stop in the Portland neighborhood.
Interim Police Chief Yvette Gentry said officers pulled over a car that was reported as stolen around 10:30 p.m. Sunday in the area of 21st and Gilligan streets.
At some point during the stop, an officer fired their weapon, hitting the man in the car. The man was taken to the hospital by EMS, where he later died.
The Jefferson County Coroner's Office says Brian Allen Thurman, 49, of Louisville died of gunshot wounds.
A female in the car then ran away from the scene on foot. Police are still looking for her. LMPD has not provided a description of the woman.
An officer was taken to the hospital to be checked out but Gentry did not elaborate on how the officer was hurt. Gentry also did not explain why the officer fired their weapon, nor did she take any questions during a brief news conference at LMPD headquarters.
She said body cameras recorded the incident. Kentucky State Police is now investigating the shooting per LMPD's new policy regarding police-involved shootings. This is the first shooting by LMPD under the new protocol announced in June after the shooting of David McAtee.
Gentry released a statement Monday night, in which she said it's up to KSP to release the video, but the agency has, so far, deemed that "unrealistic":
“LMPD experienced an officer-involved-shooting incident last night at approximately 10:30 p.m. in the Portland neighborhood. This is the first since we announced a reform agreement calling for the Kentucky State Police (KSP) to act as primary investigating agency for Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) critical incidents.
This reform is the result of us listening to the concerns that you – the community – had about your police department conducting investigations into its own members in such matters. We have heard you. The Kentucky State Police has taken jurisdictional authority over this investigation, its records, and the release thereof.
As you’re aware, LMPD practice has been to release body worn video footage of such incidents within 24 hours in an effort to be as transparent as possible. However, KSP has determined that logistics and variances in practices have made that unrealistic in this case. We defer to KSP on the specific timing in this case, and we will be evaluating how this works going forward.
We agreed to place these investigations in the hands of another agency as one initiative on the path to restoring trust between LMPD and our community. There are many ideas for how this might work, including the possible creation of a multi-agency task force to work throughout the state, and those ideas remain on the table.
For now, we trust the Kentucky State Police will conduct a thorough, fair, and impartial investigation regarding the facts surrounding this case.
Yvette Gentry
Chief of Police - LMPD”
In a statement Monday night, KSP said body camera video is "generally' released within 72 hours, though there are exceptions:
"It is Kentucky State Police policy not to release body camera video until vital witnesses can be interviewed and pertinent facts gathered. Generally, this can be done within 72 hours unless the complexity of the investigation requires more time."
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