LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Negotiations continue to reach a consent decree between the Louisville Metro government and the U.S. Department of Justice. It’s something Louisville Metro Police Chief Paul Humphrey was hoping to finalize by the fall.
Preliminary negotiations started in February between the DOJ and the Metro government.
Humphrey said on Wednesday they’re getting close.
“It’s something that I would have hoped we would have had months and months ago,” Humphrey said. “But, as these things tend to happen, we are going back and forth on different details and what it comes down to is we want to make sure that, we get the best possible agreement for the citizens of Louisville and the police department so that we can do our job effectively to keep people safe.”
With a new federal administration underway with President-elect Donald Trump, questions have been raised if an agreement will be reached before the year ends.
“Regardless of the administration, this is going to have to be a partnership between us, the Department of Justice, and the community, to make sure that we police to the expectations that the community has for us. And we do it in the right way, and we do it in a way that’s effective to make sure that we solve this violent crime problem,” Humphrey said.
It’s something Mayor Craig Greenberg, D-Louisville, addressed during his weekly briefings.
“The question was, do I commit to signing that before the conclusion of this administration? There are two parties to the agreement. So we need the DOJ and the city of Louisville to both agree,” said Greenberg.
Greenberg outlined his three principles for reaching an agreement. First, real meaningful reform to improve the culture of LMPD and the approach to policing. Second, these reforms and improvements must work side by side to support efforts to improve public safety and reduce the amount of gun violence in the city. Third, the signed consent decree must have specific performance measures and a clear path to meeting those measures.
According to Cornell Law School, once all parties agree on a consent decree, it’s submitted to a court — in this case, most likely a federal court. Then, when it’s approved by a judge, it becomes a binding and enforceable agreement for both parties.