LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Louisville Metro Police (LMPD) Chief Paul Humphrey believes re-enforcing a 1983 mask ordinance will be another tool to help officers prevent violent crime from happening in the city.
The decades-old ordinance bans facial coverings used to conceal someone's identity in a public space.
During a bi-weekly crime update on Wednesday, Humphrey said officers will need to consider the "totality of circumstances" when deciding whether or not to stop and question someone wearing a mask.
"We are not creating some new initiative or anti-mask taskforce. We understand there are legitimate health reasons why people wear masks. But we also understand there are people who are taking advantage of that and they are using masks to conceal their identity in order to prey on the community and we see it time and time again," he said.
According to the chief, suspects in Sunday night's shooting outside Pleasure Ridge Park High School were wearing masks to conceal their identity. He also cited other instances where suspects wore masks to commit robberies, thefts or carjackings.
"[The ordinance is] not about going out and targeting people who have health issues," he said.
Humphrey later added that profiling is something the department is aware of in bringing back the ordinance, which hasn't been enforced since the pandemic began.
"The better information, the better training that we give officers so that they have a solid understanding of what their looking for that gives them an indication that a crime is a foot, which is what the law requires, the less likely we are to run into situations of profiling," he explained.
When asked if there was evidence that shows enforcing a mask ban helps lower violent crime, Humphrey said there is evidence that police interaction works to prevent violent crime.
"We have to be proactive in our policing," he said. "We do have to be very aware that there are risks that come along with everything that we do, and we have to be aware of that, and officers are very aware of that. But we have to use those tools available to us to keep people safe."
Mayor Craig Greenberg said Tuesday the ordinance needs to be updated to reflect changes in public health since the COVID-19 pandemic. Humphrey said those updates will also clearly define when officers can stop people wearing masks.
The mayor plans to work with Metro Council to amend the ordinance and will seek public input as well.
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