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This Week In Conversation: Are Louisville Metro Police Traffic Stops Effective, Or Racial Profiling?

 Two Louisville Metro Police Department cruisers are parked under an overpass in Louisville.
J. Tyler Franklin
/
Louisville Public Media
Two Louisville Metro Police Department cruisers are parked under an overpass in Louisville.

A now-viral videoof a Louisville Metro Police traffic stop — in which officers pulled over a black teenager in west Louisville for making a wide turn then searched his car after he was handcuffed and frisked — has sparked criticism of LMPD policies.

An internal investigation has been launched into the traffic stop involving 18-year-old Tae-Ahn Lea, and Mayor Greg Fischer has asked for a review of the department’s traffic stop data.

Police leaders say such stops in high-crime areas are an effective toolin battling drug dealing, gang violence and other problems.

Critics arguethat the policy is over-aggressive, and some say it often amounts to racial profiling.

Next time on WFPL’s In Conversation, we’ll talk about LMPD’s use of traffic stops.

Our guests will include:


  • Nicolai Jilek, President of the River City Fraternal Order of Police
  • Keturah Herron, ACLU of Kentucky Field Organizer for Juvenile Justice

Listen to In Conversation live on 89.3 WFPL Friday at 11 a.m. or follow along with our live Tweets at @WFPLnews. Call with your questions or comments at 502-814-TALK or tweet us with the hashtag #WFPLconversation. We’re also on Facebook.

Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.

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