LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Just one day after a Louisville Metro Police (LMPD) officer shot a woman in the Valley Station neighborhood, the interim chief is answering questions about accountability and transparency.
Interim Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel spoke to the NAACP Louisville Branch for the first time Monday.
"If we're doing it the right way, guess what? We don't have anything to hide," Gwinn-Villaroel said.
She said LMPD is committed to transparency and community engagement, and pointed to the Youth Advisory Council and Accountability Improvement Bureau.
"But in anything that we do, we can always do it better. So, you're going to really be seeing us moving aggressively in that direction," Gwinn-Villaroel said.
But with the latest police shooting Sunday night, it raises questions about transparency and the timely release of police body camera footage.
Kentucky State Police (KSP) started handling all investigations where an officer shoots a civilian in 2020, and they do not release the footage right away.
Sometimes they may hold it for weeks.
Metro Council President Markus Winkler told WHAS11 News it may be time to rethink the process.
Mayor Craig Greenberg said he "will be encouraging the KSP to release the body camera footage as soon as possible."
While he said he believes LMPD acted justly, he says the public deserves the facts as soon as possible.
Gwinn-Villaroel said for now she respects KSP's process.
"When they deem it necessary and appropriate to release that video footage, whatever time frame that is, then we'll respect that," she said.
NAACP President Raoul Cunningham said he believes the chief was honest with them.
He said whether its body cam footage, or community involvement, the relationship will work and that "steps have got to be taken on both sides to bridge those gaps."
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