Shively police announce policy changes, safeguards for Flock camera use after officer's arrest

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — The Shively Police Department is changing its Flock camera policy after one of its officers was arrested for using the software to search for his ex thousands of times.

Shively police officer Asad Zahir was arrested last week and faces several charges, including official misconduct, after an audit revealed he conducted 2,048 searches involving two vehicles connected to the woman. Police said she is not associated with any active criminal investigation.

Zahir, who joined the department in 2022, pleaded not guilty to the charges. He was suspended without pay and has no police powers, badge or department-issued firearm while the criminal and internal investigations continue.

The case prompted the department to take a deeper look at its audit system. Chief Andre Bottoms said that review found a "significant gap" in the department's previous auditing process. It also found the department's own policies were not being followed.

"Our department did not meet its own standards in the area, and for that we accept full responsibility," Bottoms said during a news conference Monday morning. "We cannot promise misconduct will never happen, but we can promise stronger controls and accountability."

The department's former policy was to audit searches of Flock cameras every 90 days, but those reviews will now happen every week, with increased documentation.

"Supervisors will weekly check these flagged searches and look into why they're flagged to determine if there is truly something amiss or if this is something that's just unusual and needs to be looked into further," said Sgt. Jordan Brown, with the Shively Police Department. "The period of times over which the search has occurred, consistently running the same plate number over and over, those are just a few examples.

The new policy requires officers who are using the system to have a legitimate law enforcement reason and enter a related case number before any searches are conducted in order to create a "direct connection between the search and documented police activity." Supervisors will then examine the police report associated with a the case number to verify that the search is legitimate.

Supervisors will also follow up with officers when necessary, and may ask for additional information to ensure the search is legitimate. Supervisors will also be required to document what activity they reviewed and what steps were taken to validate the search. The department said that will create a record showing that required oversight occurred and what action, if any, was taken.

Validated searches will be documented as "reviewed and approved," and searches that can't be validated or appear inconsistent will be elevated up the chain of command to be reviewed more. Any questionable activity will be referred to administration for an investigation, depending on the circumstances.

The new policy also expands oversight to other personnel, including supervisors, investigators, command staff and administration, rather than just patrol officers. Records of any reviews will also be maintained to verify audits are being completed and documented. Access to the system will also be disabled when an employee is suspended, reassigned or separated from the department. The department will also document any deactivation of access.

The department said this new policy replaces "a process that relied heavily on limited periodic review with one that combines automated identification of unusual activity, weekly human review, verification against underlying police reports, written documentation and escalation of questionable searches."

Officials wouldn't say how many Flock cameras are located in Shively, but noted there are more than 10. The department does not reveal the location of any of its cameras.