Activists, Louisville Metro Collaborating For LGBT Citizens Police Academy

The Fairness Campaign and Louisville Metro Police will host a citizens police academy aimed at improving safety in Louisville's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.

The six-week LGBT Citizens Police Academy begins Feb. 26 and will cover issues including violent crimes, crisis intervention and domestic violence, according to a news release issued Tuesday by the Fairness Campaign, a Louisville-based LGBT activist group.

The purpose of the academy is to improve the relationship between Louisville's LGBT community and police. The Fairness Campaign noted that two openly gay men, Sherman Edwards and Denny Kincaid, were murdered in Louisville in January. Arrests were made in both of those cases, according to media reports.

"We believe we must work proactively with our whole community, especially the Louisville Metro Police Department, to address LGBT safety and violence," Fairness Campaign director Chris Hartman said in the news release.

The academy meetings will begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday nights at various locations. The news release adds:
The Academy is open to all LGBT and allied people who complete the attached Citizens Police Academy Registration Form and return it to Laura@Fairness.org or who call the Fairness Campaign office at (502) 893-0788 by February 20. Participants must be available for at least five weeks of the six-week program and registration is limited.