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Chief Conrad: So many officer-involved shootings are “concerning” and “creates anxiety”

Chief Conrad said the recent incidents in such a short amount of time "creates stress for our community and for our officers."

LOUISVILLE (WHAS11) -- An officer in Louisville's Shawnee neighborhood shot and killed a man in an incident on Wednesday night. An officer was injured as well.

After releasing body camera footage of the shooting on Thursday, Louisville Metro Police Chief Steve Conrad addressed the high number of shootings involving officers.

“I know that having so many incidents in a relatively short amount of time is concerning. It creates anxiety,” Conrad said. “It creates stress for our community and for our officers.”

The body camera video reveals chaos and danger for those who were there. At one point, an officer was inside the home, trying to get to the suspect, all while a fire was blazing in the room next door.

In the police body camera footage, there is a limited view of the shooting from Wednesday, you cannot see what the officer saw that made him decide to fire his gun and shoot 42-year-old Isaac Jackson. You can hear an officer ask Jackson to show his hands before firing.

RELATED: Click here to see the LMPD body camera video

The limited view of police body cameras is something Chief Steve Conrad has addressed during every one of these news conferences, but he specifically stressed it before showing the video from Wednesday night's incident

“Unlike some of the officer-involved shootings we've had, you will see the impact of the limited field of view in this situation,” Conrad said. “Because of this limitation, we can't see what the officer saw when the decision was made to use deadly force. So, it is critically important that we offer a thorough and complete investigation.”

Police said the officers were responding to several calls from family and neighbors of Jackson breaking out the windows of this home on 42nd Street and starting a fire inside.

Before shots were fired, another officer entered the home first, police said the suspect threw a knife at him and it hit him in the leg.

RELATED: Due to number of threats against LMPD, officers responding to calls will double

This is the third officer-involved shooting in Louisville this week, though one did not involve LMPD officers. It is the fifth incident to happen in the last 30 days. Chief Conrad said officers have de-escalation training every year but will have additional training later in 2018.

“This training, which focuses on de-escalation training involves dealing with people who are armed with edged weapons, and will add another layer of tools for officers to use when they interact with people who may be in crisis or showing erratic or dangerous behavior,” Conrad said.

The officer was released from the hospital. It is not known when he will return to work. Brendan Kaiser is the officer that fired his gun on Wednesday night. He has been with the department since October 2016. He is on administrative leave as the Public Integrity Unit investigates.

Credit: LMPD
LMPD officer Brendan Kaiser

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