Videos of an illegal street takeover near Iroquois Park in south Louisville have angered some residents. The recordings, circulating across social media, show cars blocking traffic at Kenwood Drive and New Cut Road on Saturday night while other drivers do burnouts in the intersection. When a Louisville Metro Police Department cruiser pulls up to the gathering, a group of people jump on the hood of his car and kick the cruiser.
After the video began making the rounds online, Democratic District 12 Metro Council Member Rick Blackwell said his phone “started blowing up” with complaints from residents of his South End district.
“They were very, very concerned not just about street racing but the folks jumping up on police cars,” he said. “It was a very pointed message that they were sending to LMPD, I feel like, that they can do whatever they want to do. We obviously can’t have that.”
LMPD said a second illegal street takeover also occurred at 23rd and Market Streets on Sunday. Officers arrested four people who allegedly participated in that gathering. They also seized four guns and impounded two cars.
Speaking at a press conference Tuesday, Interim Police Chief Paul Humphrey said the street racing and street takeovers are unacceptable
“It is not fair to the people that live in these neighborhoods that have to put up with that,” Humphrey said. “It’s not fair to the individual officers that have to deal with that, so we are going to make sure it’s dealt with.”
Humphrey said some of the people involved in these gatherings don’t live in Louisville. He said LMPD is working with police departments in Cincinnati and Indianapolis to try and identify the individuals organizing the gatherings.
While police haven’t taken any action in connection with the street takeover Saturday night, Humphrey said that doesn’t mean participants are going to skate by. He pointed to a city ordinance that allows the department to punish people who attend these events up to a year later.
“If they think they got away, they need to think again,” Humphrey said. “We’re going to continue to work to make sure those people are held accountable.”
The ordinance, known as the Vehicle Speed Contests and Reckless Driving Exhibitions, empowers law enforcement to fine anyone participating in street takeovers up to $1,000 for a first offense.
Metro Council approved a series of amendments to the local law about two years ago, increasing the amount of time officers have to levy the fines. It also allowed police to hold vehicles involved in takeovers for six months.
Officers don’t have to be present to enforce the ordinance. With the changes, they can rely instead on witness testimony and camera footage.
LMPD says it’s seized 63 vehicles since the ordinance was amended.
Over the last year, many Metro Council members have invested their neighborhood funds into flock cameras, which record high resolution images of license plates that officers can access.
Council Member Blackwell, along with District 14 Democrat Cindi Fowler, have an ordinance up for approval this week to fund the purchase of 28 additional license plate readers that would be deployed across the South End, where their districts are.
