LOUISVILLE, Ky. — For the first time, Louisville Metro Police officers are speaking out to the community -- days after the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced its findings into policing in Louisville.
It took place during an event called the Bishop's Table on Friday, hosted inside Gospel Missionary Church by Bishop Dennis Lyons.
Lyons said the name can be misleading.
“You think it's a bunch of bishops sitting around a table,” he said. “You never really think it's police, grandmothers, ex-convicts, protestors."
As one after another, we heard from LMPD officers.
“Regardless of what happens. I love you all,” Ofc. Charles Bradley, with LMPD’s Community Engagement Unit, said. “And you can't do nothing about it.”
“Like officer Bradley said, I'm committed,” Lt. Tom Hollis, of LMPD’s 2nd Division, said. “I am not going anywhere. We'll work it out together.”
The reassurance comes days after a scathing DOJ report ー one that found LMPD engages in a pattern of conduct that deprives people of their rights.
“This week has been rough. I wanted you to know, the word for the day is committed. I'm committed to you guys, and I'm not going anywhere,” Bradley said.
Officer commitments were met both with cheers and criticism
"I don't believe anything that y'all [say]. Nothing,” one local activist shouted during the meeting. “Y'all lying, right now. Everything that comes out [of] your mouth is a lie."
“What happened with the DOJ did nothing but expose what we already knew and [what we’ve] been seeing from 9th Street all the way to Shawnee Park,” another local activist who spoke at the meeting said.
Lyons said although these face-to-face meetings can be uncomfortable, the community needs more of them.
“That's what's important. Many times, when you go to meetings you can't be as candid as you want to be. The roundtable presents that avenue,” he said.
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