DOJ: Louisville Police Practices Unconstitutional

The Louisville city government and police department conducted practices that violated the Constitution, according to a new investigation released Wednesday by the Department of Justice.

The Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government and the Louisville Metro Police Department had patterns of unlawful practices, Attorney General Merrick Garland said during a press conference in Louisville on Wednesday. The DOJ investigation, the results of which Garland announced Wednesday, was launched after Louisville police officers shot and killed Breonna Taylor in 2020. That shooting sparked nationwide protests and calls for police reform.

In its report , the DOJ had “reasonable cause to believe” that the city government and police department engaged in “a pattern or practice of conduct that deprives people of their rights under the Constitution and federal law.”

The report says some of the LMPD’s unconstitutional practices included unjustified neck restraints, unreasonable uses of dogs and tasers, unlawful searches without knocking or announcing or searches with invalid warrants, unlawful practices during traffic and pedestrian stops, and discrimination against Black people and people with behavioral health disabilities, among other patterns, Politico reports.