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From The Hill:
Attorney General Merrick Garland announced Monday that the Department of Justice (DOJ) would launch an investigation into the Louisville Police Department, the second such probe announced in the past week.
The so-called pattern or practice investigation comes after the death of Breonna Taylor, an African American woman who was killed last year by Louisville police during a no-knock raid on her apartment.
"Those investigations, and the recommendations and actions that ensue, do not only protect individual civil rights. They also assist police departments in developing measures to increase transparency and accountability," Garland said in the announcement at the department's headquarters.
The move tees up greater federal oversight of local police departments, giving the DOJ an avenue to bring civil suits against police departments with a pattern of using excessive force or discriminatory practices against certain groups of people, such as people of color or people with disabilities.
As we reported last year, Louisville Metro’s brass was cozy with Moms Demand Action. Chief Conrad has since been fired due to another botched response that left people dead. Our report on the chief and Moms Demand Action can be found below:
Now we move on to the mayor, Greg Fischer.
Breonna Taylor’s family is actually pursing legal action against the city because there’s evidence that the area Breonna and her boyfriend lived at was being targeted by the Louisville Metro PD as a means to chase out “undesirables“ so the area could be gentrified. More in our report on that here:
According to the Taylor family attorneys, that area was targeted because of this development plan:
The attorneys claim Louisville Metro Police more aggressively pursued a drug case against Jamarcus Glover, who they say is Taylor's ex-boyfriend, and others, because of where they allegedly operated -- a home on Elliott Avenue in the heart of Russell.
The attorneys claim certain "lingering" homes and people remained an obstacle to the redevelopment plans, including Glover. They said a dedicated squad within LMPD's Criminal Interdiction Unit called Place Based Investigations was tasked with focusing on certain areas which needed to be "cleared" for real estate development.
Further (also in our above link):
A Metro Council committee has filed an order to launch an investigation into Mayor Greg Fischer.
They committee said it is demanding transparency from the administration in its handling of the cases for Breonna Taylor, David McAtee and protests following their deaths.
According to the order, Metro Council wants relevant documents released, along with identifying any shortcomings in police training -- specifically the execution of no-knock warrants in the middle of the night.
The order would also grant subpoena powers to the government oversight committee.
If wrongdoing is found by the DOJ, Moms Demand Action’s own people are responsible.
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