Citizens Against Police Abuse

• CAPA ARCHIVES
• PRESS ARCHIVES

 Address To Metro Council---January 22, 2004

President Downard, you have had a tremendous burden placed upon your shoulders.

We hope that you are strong enough to carry this burden. You will have to bring the Council together and bring this community together. CAPA has met with you.

You said you wanted to wait and see how the new processes were going to work

The community along with you has waited and seen. We’re tired of waiting. We’ve seen enough.

Now is the time to implement the 2000 Civilian Review Ordinance.

We’re asking you to begin the process. We’re asking you in your role as Metro Council President to officially begin the process.

We want to point out that the 2000 Ordinance has been carefully scrutinized by the people.

It has been scrutinized by the court. We also want to point out that we believe that it is totally undemocratic to let an ordinance that has been voted on by the people sit unused.

We also believe that the ordinance has been falsely portrayed by its opponents as a radical reform. It is not. Quoting Professor Blaine Hudson of the University of Louisville. “It is a relatively mild reform.”

We invite you to take a look at South Africa’s Independent Complaints Directory (ICD).

“The ICD is required to investigate all deaths that are related to police misconduct and may investigate any other alleged misconduct. In Addition to other legal powers, ICD can make arrests. The ICD may recommend how the police department should discipline the officer involved. The ICD has these powers because the police was a key instrument in enforcing apartheid in South Africa.” From - Building Public Confidence In Police Through Civilian Oversight by Phillips and Trone, Vera Institute of Justice, September 2002.

President Downard, the ICD is a radical reform.

We want to remind everyone that both the Louisville and Lexington Police Departments were created to control free and slave blacks, not lawbreakers. In this they are similar to the South African Police. Remember, the greatest fear of southern whites in America was slave revolt.

President Downard, we ask you to implement the 2000 Civilian Review Ordinance.