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The protesters attempted to hand-deliver their own letter to LMPD Chief Steve Conrad, but Metro Police closed the lobby of its headquarters. Most of the protesters then blocked the intersection along West Jefferson, chanting for Mutchler to be fired from his position as an LMPD sergeant and head of the local FOP chapter.
Metro Police did not respond to a request for comment on the protest or their reasoning for closing the lobby to the public.
Former Metro Councilwoman Attica Scott was one of the organizers of the protest. She criticized police for closing the lobby.
“The fact that you would respond to a threat on us as community members by closing down the headquarters says to me that you’re not willing to build relationships, which is what we’re trying to do,” said Scott. “We’re trying to build a better community, and what you’re doing is counterproductive to that.”
Although Conrad and Mayor Greg Fischer issued a joint statement Friday night condemning Mutchler’s letter — which has since gained national attention — Scott said they need to go further. Among a list of 12 demands the group delivered to police is that Mutchler be fired.
“Both Mayor Fischer and Chief Conrad gave a very tepid response to the threat against people in their community, and they have to do more than just a blanket statement that says, ‘Oh, we’re sorry this happened,'” said Scott. “There has to be action against Mutchler as a sergeant of LMPD.”
Chanelle Helm, one of the most visible local protesters in the Black Lives Matter movement since last summer, said of all the threats in Mutchler’s letter that warrant his firing, the most serious was his call for supporters to “rise with us against” police critics. As for LMPD closing its lobby, Helm said it shows “they agree with Mutchler … That says to me that you agree with that shit. That you are OK with white supremacy.”
The ACLU of Kentucky issued a strong denunciation of Mutchler’s letter last week, saying it was an open threat to citizens’ First Amendment rights that “only serves to further divide our community.” ACLU-KY’s spokeswoman, Amber Duke, said today that Mutchler’s letter “is one of the most outrageous documents I’ve ever read. For a law enforcement officer who has taken an oath to protect and serve to put the community ‘on notice’ was really outrageous. So I’m really glad that the community response has been swift, and I think the work will continue.”
“It would have been great if the chief and the mayor could have been out here today to talk with these folks,” said Duke. “To give a clear signal that government officials stand on the side of the people and are here to protect our rights.”
But not all critics of Mutchler approved of the decision of most protesters to block off the street during Monday’s action. Ricky Jones, chair of Pan-African Studies of the University of Louisville, said the tactic was “politically stupid” and the result of activists who “hijacked” the protest from its original organizers. He stressed that Fischer and Conrad are limited in the actions they can take against Mutchler, as opposed to the rank-and-file FOP union members who put him in power and could change their leadership.
“Those of us who have defended good officers and believe that the majority of officers in this city are good, we’re calling on them to please step forward and say they don’t support (Mutchler’s) ideology,” said Jones. “But the mayor and police chief, they’ve already come out with positions that are not in support of Mutchler. So to come out and block traffic of other citizens, who more than likely do not support that letter either, is absolutely unconstructive. You never unnecessarily turn friends into enemies.”
Jones also said Fischer and Conrad are limited in their ability to create an independent civilian review board of police officers’ use of force that has subpoena power, another longtime goal of local activists.
“We need some laws (in Frankfort) to be changed,” said Jones. “It’s not something the mayor can do on his own, it’s not something the police chief can do on his own. Just like it’s not within the police chief’s purview to fire the FOP president. That takes the rank-and-file FOP for that. And the chief’s already come out against it, so why attack the chief? It makes no sense.”
Earlier on Monday, Fischer sent a letter to LMPD officers saying he realizes the great challenges they face on the job and supports them, but he reiterated his criticism of Mutchler’s letter.
“For many, it was hard not to interpret Mr. Mutchler’s letter as threatening,” wrote Fischer. “While he said that was not his intention, he used language that made many people fearful and defensive. Furthermore, some of his statements have the potential to undue (sic) years of the Louisville Metro Police Department’s work to develop thoughtful and constructive relationships with community members
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