LEO Weekly Sept. 3, 2020

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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A LETTER TO THE COMMUNITY

LIKE LEO? HERE’S HOW TO HELP.

BY LEO WEEKLY We at LEO offer our sincerest congratulations to The Courier Journal for winning its 11th Pulitzer Prize, this one for studiously and unrelentingly chronicling the avalanche of last-minute pardons and commutations handed out by the corrupt, craven and mercenary Gov.-reject Matt Bevin.

We are fortunate as a city to have it as our paper. In a poignant tribute and plea, former CJ reporter Howard Fineman wrote in The Washington Post that the paper’s latest plaudit “should remind us (and surely was meant to remind us), that what we call ‘local’ journalism is profoundly essential to self-government as the Founders designed it, and to the American way of life.” He cited a study that found nearly 1,800 newspapers have closed since 2004, and he said, “Virtually all of the remaining 7,000 are thinner and weaker than ever.” He implored you to subscribe to the paper because, as the op-ed’s headline said: “My former newspaper is struggling — and is more important than ever.”

This is all true, but there is more.

What Fineman’s op-ed neglected to underscore is that the news media landscape extends far beyond daily newspapers and must include alternative weeklies.

Alt-weeklies also provide “local journalism” and are “profoundly essential.” They are critically important because they work in the margins and areas where newspapers do not or cannot. They provide free-to-read accounts of a community’s culture, ethos and priorities. Good ones are not substitutes for daily newspapers, although their coverage and stories may overlap.

At LEO, our goal since John Yarmuth founded it in 1990 has been to dive deeply into areas that The CJ and other mainstream news media have neglected, dismissed or overlooked. Accordingly, LEO is the authority on local music, theater and visual arts. We publish A&E guides twice a year. Every issue of LEO has (or had) at least two food and drink stories, including reviews, a beer column and insiders’ views on the service industry. We offer a range of commentary, which, admittedly, skews left but also has included conservative and right-leaning views (such as a column from, gasp — Mitch McConnell). We print op-eds that The CJ would not, such as from Black Lives Matter. We champion equality and provide a voice to the LGBTQ+ community. Our printed and online lists celebrate the best things to do in the region to help you plan your week and weekends. We also publish news stories that are written differently (we’d like to say, more interestingly) than a newspaper would run. They include primary source stories (first-person) and stories told through alternative (there is that word again) formats. Our core topics include those that the daily paper rarely touches, such as urban planning, race relations, labor and the environment (since The CJ’s ace enviro reporter moved on). And, they include media criticism (we are looking at you CJ, but we have given ourselves thorns) because who else is going to do it?

In short, Louisville has at least six ways you can get your news, counting TV and radio.

We try to not be like any of them.

We try not to tell the same story.

We try to be more interesting and less predictable.

And the hundreds of thousands of people who read us and click on our stories tell us we are doing something right.

Alas, LEO, as you might imagine, also has been crippled by this virus, as have alt-weeklies across the nation.

LEO is free to pick up and relies almost entirely on advertising. No subscriptions. No grants. No membership drive for donations twice a year.

The backbone of our advertising is entertainment (think: music, ballet, theater and visual art) and food and drink. Similarly, we distribute to places where people enjoy those activities and relax (think: bars, coffee shops, restaurants, etc.), and those have been closed. LEO already runs lean and has not had to furlough any editorial staff — yet — but our editorial budget has been cut by three-quarters. LEO has been online-only mostly since the epidemic began. Starting with this issue, our goal is to publish a print edition every other week. Fortunately, we have been an outlier among alt-weeklies, so far.

A story from NiemanLab listed more than 40 alt-weeklies that had taken steps to survive within just days of us all realizing this pandemic was real.

Many suspended print publication, others furloughed staff and, still, others asked for donations.

They included Pittsburgh City Paper, which launched a membership program: “in order to help fight some of these losses, with the hope that readers who depend on our daily coverage of local news, arts, music, food, and entertainment recognize the importance in the work we do to keep the city informed and want us to continue.”

We like that idea!

Won’t you please consider helping to fund LEO’s mission by underwriting a reporter or providing financial support for more stories?

You could sponsor a reporter to cover a specific topic or issue, such as visual arts or theater or labor… or poverty… or the environment or… you name it.

Perhaps you want to sponsor a weekly column on dance or jazz, or you want to underwrite a series of stories on land use in The West End. You would not have a say in exactly what we write and what gets printed, but you would see more coverage in the area you have selected.

If you are interested, please contact us at: leoweekly.com And, please, if you value LEO and want us to continue to survive and thrive, continue picking up the papers, continue sharing stories on social media and consider advertising if you do not already.

As always but particularly now, thank you for reading LEO, and thanks to all of you who have emailed and called to ask when you would see another printed edition on the news stands.

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

click on LEOWEEKLY.COM READ MORE AT LEOWEEKLY.COM/WEB

HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT CORONA? WE HAVE ANSWERS Go to leoweekly.com/web to read Dan Canon’s conversation with Dr. Ana Bento, an epidemiologist, about the ongoing pandemic. Topics include how to speak to family members who downplay the virus, the prospects for a vaccine and herd immunity.

Bento said: “We just need to realize that we need to change our lifestyle and the way we mix with others. What we were doing before pandemic doesn’t work for our new reality.”

ON THE COVER

DESIGN BY TALON HAMPTON

LOUISVILLE ECCENTRIC OBSERVER

Volume 30 | Number 39 974 BRECKENRIDGE LANE #170. LOUISVILLE KY 40207 PHONE (502) 895-9770 FAX (502) 895-9779 FOUNDER

John Yarmuth EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Aaron Yarmuth, ayarmuth@leoweekly.com PUBLISHER

Laura Snyder, lsnyder@redpinmedia.com OFFICE MANAGER

Elizabeth Knapp, eknapp@redpinmedia.com MANAGING EDITOR

Keith Stone, kstone@leoweekly.com EDITOR-AT-LARGE

Scott Recker, srecker@leoweekly.com

The LEO Weekly is printed on recycled newsprint with soy-based ink.

CONTRIBUTORS

Dan Canon, Hannah L. Drake, Robin Garr, Craig Martin, Whitney Martin, Krystal Moore, Susan Reigler, Writer Illustrations by Yoko Molotov ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

Marsha Blacker, mblacker@leoweekly.com Julie Koening, jkoenig@redpinmedia.com Karen Pierce, kpierce @redpinmedia.com

THE FIGHT A VIRTUAL SPEED CINEMA PRESENTATION An inspiring, emotional film following a team of dedicated American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) lawyers representing lawsuits challenging recent policies on reproductive rights, immigration, and LGBT rights.

DISTRIBUTION MANAGER

Megan Campbell Smith: distribution@leoweekly.com

MANAGER OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT / RED PIN TIX

Michelle Roeder: mroeder@redpinmedia.com

STAFF WRITER

Danielle Grady, dgrady@leoweekly.com

Available to stream NOW at

speedmuseum.org/cinema

ART DIRECTOR

Talon Hampton, thampton@redpinmedia.com GRAPHIC ARTIST

Hannah Boswell, hboswell@redpinmedia.com CONTRIBUTING ARTS EDITOR

A portion of all ticket sales goes to support the Museum!

Jo Anne Triplett, jtriplettart@yahoo.com This presentation is made possible through generous support by the Ernest and Ona Marshall Fund.

LEO Weekly is published weekly by LEO Weekly LLC. Copyright LEO Weekly LLC. All rights reserved. The opinions expressed herein are exclusively those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Publisher. LEO Weekly is available free of charge, limited to one copy per reader. No portion may be reproduced in whole or in part by any means, including electronic retrieval systems, without the express permission of LEO Weekly LLC. LEO Weekly may be distributed only by authorized independent contractors or authorized distributors. Louisville Eccentric Observer (LEO) is a trademark of LEO Weekly LLC.

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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ON: LOUISVILLE’S ‘BLACK SIX’ OF 1970, TACTICS, REPRESSION THE SAME TODAY

Mayor Farnsley recorded an account of the tearing down of black businesses and the problems created by federal urban renewal practices for funding. Racism is structural and long. —Mary Haynes

ON: MANFRED REID, ONE OF THE ‘BLACK SIX’

Today, he’d have been shot by that officer and think of the loss that would have been. —Jackie Kinslow They say we want to disband police departments (and that we hate the police): we don’t, that’s a lie. We want to weed out racism and unnecessary police brutality and for those who abuse their power to be held accountable. ... They say we hate America: we don’t, that’s a lie. We just recognize our faults and want us to do better, be better. Stop with the us vs. them. Stop with the straw man arguments. Stop with the fake news. Stop with fox news. Our position is one of empathy, compassion and logic. Stop believing the hype. Stop with the division. Just because we want equality for all doesn’t mean we want to take anything away from you.

—Steven Back Heck no, they won’t change. Then, helped put Trump in The White House. This reality we are in makes John Mayer’s song seem so naive [“Waiting On The World To Change”]. —Michael Kimbro

ON: EDITOR’S NOTE, REFORMING POLICE TO CURB SHOOTINGS

While I agree that funding needs to be shifted, and social programs need to be funded in a hard effort to bring equity to underserved communities, I also should be able to go about my life without the constant, very real threat of carjacking, or getting caught in a crossfire. And that’s nothing compared to the young lives that are being cut short daily. As a West End resident, I still want community policing, and the residents out here need to have a sense of safety. There is not one answer to these problems, and it’s time for everyone to sit down and come up with initiatives that have substance. The AG also needs to release a definitive verdict in his investigation so that this city is no longer held hostage by inaction. —Lisa Schmid

ON: PHOTO SET, ‘GOOD TROUBLE TUESDAY’ WAS PEACEFUL, IMPACTFUL

About 70 arrested for being peaceful? —Roseanne Johnson Southard Yes, for being peaceful, they were peaceful. You are on the wrong side of history. —Diane Magee Rowan Roseanne Johnson Southard, it is called civil disobedience.

Been used throughout American history. —David Jarczewski

ON: UNDERCOVER COMMENTARY

I mean at least Robocop upholds the law and protects the innocent while taking on peener crime with laser-point accuracy.

Your move, creeps. —Chris Phipps

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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EDITOR’S NOTE

DON’T CANCEL DERBY — USE IT!

By Aaron Yarmuth | ayarmuth@leoweekly.com MY UNCLE recently sent me a quote from businessman Stephen Covey: “The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.”

Nobody struggles with this more than I do, but…

For protesters, seeking justice for Breonna Taylor is the main thing. Spreading the message that Black lives matter is the main thing.

Some protesters contend that Churchill Downs should cancel the Derby entirely — to show support for justice and racial equality and because the city should not be celebrating at a historic time of racial division.

I completely agree the city should not be celebrating, but there is no celebrating this year even if the Derby runs. There will not be a festival or fans or late-night parties with celebrities in attendance.

Canceling the race might seem like the only way for protesters to focus on the main thing.

But those who call for the Derby to be canceled may not have considered the criti-

cal role sports have played in amplifying major social movements — even what sports have already done for this movement.

Every major sporting event that I can recall attending has had some form of advocacy presence or protest aimed at spreading a message to fans on their way into the stadium: Over 60,000 fans at the Super Bowl, 80,000 fans at the Final Four, 175,000-plus fans at the Daytona 500 and, of course, more than 150,000 fans attending the Kentucky Derby, all greeted by protesters who care more about their cause than the event drawing all those people together.

Of course, the Derby will not have fans to engage this year, but there are other ways the event can support the important, main thing.

I guarantee that NBC will have a pre-race segment, probably narrated by announcer Mike Tirico, on Breonna Taylor and how the police killed her in her own home and then the subsequent months of protests in Louisville.

To cancel the Derby would be to miss out on sending that story to over 16 million

viewers.

What about when the winning jockey is interviewed immediately following the race? They could use that platform to add their voice to the movement, just as Olympic runners Tommie Smith and John Carlos did on the podium at the 1968 Olympics, black glove fists raised in the air, standing with bare feet to protest Black poverty in the U.S. Look at what the NBA has done just this last month.

After Kenosha, Wisconsin police shot Jacob Blake, NBA players didn’t show up to play, led first by the Milwaukee Bucks, the team closest to Kenosha. This was followed by similar gestures of support in other sports, including the WNBA and Major League Baseball.

The NBA players considered ending the season for good, as a way to say: no justice, no entertainment.

Ultimately, the players decided that if they canceled the season they would be forfeiting a significant platform to support the movement going forward.

Canceling would not help the main thing — it would hurt it. As it turned out, not playing, even for a couple of days, was more powerful because of the continued spotlight once they returned to play.

The NBA also moved players’ names on the back of their jerseys and replaced them

with personalized messages and slogans supporting equality. At first, the concept sounded trite — after all, who is sacrificing to have their name replaced on their jersey? But seldom does a minute go by that a different message doesn’t strike viewers through the TV. Each message, personal to the player, makes you stop and think for a moment or more. It turns out, just those words and short messages truly disrupt the traditional broadcast. They turned the sport, regularly an opportunity to forget about consequential, real-life issues, into a constant reminder of what’s actually important — the main thing.

So, instead of canceling, we should be asking: What can the Derby do to support the main thing?

Why not push Churchill Downs to adopt something similar for the 146th Derby? The jockeys’ silks, a trademark of the Derby aesthetic, tradition and unique to horse racing, used as a platform expressing support for racial equality, would be an unmissable statement to millions of viewers. Or cover the iconic twin spires in black?

Or delay the race by the “longest two minutes of silence.”

For Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and countless others killed by police, the main thing has to be the main thing: Black lives matter. •

UNDERCOVER

MANOFMETTLE.COM LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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WRITE SOME SHIT

LET THEM EAT CAKE: AN OPEN LETTER TO BILL CARSTANJEN, CEO OF CHURCHILL DOWNS INC.

By Hannah L. Drake | leo@leoweekly.com it was severed in time, split in two, precorona and corona. Businesses adjusted, and the Kentucky Derby was moved to September. And even while the numbers of those TO BE HONEST, I questioned writing this infected by the coronavirus continued to letter. Indeed if there was ever a David and increase, the Kentucky Derby didn’t waver Goliath story, this is it. I am a poet and from its plan of having 20,000 spectators in writer in Louisville, Kentucky, directing this the stands. (the Kentucky Derby has recently letter to Churchill Downs CEO Bill Carstanreversed its decision, and the Derby will be jen, a name that many may not know. But run with no spectators.) indeed, they know the institution Churchill When I first read they were still having Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby or Derby, I thought there is absolutely no way what many call the “greatest two minutes that can happen! I have in sports.” I am well aware that Bill If that be the case, attended and performed at Derby events at Carstanjen probably Churchill Downs, has no idea who I would expect and to believe 20,000 I am. Being the the CEO of one of people gambling and highest-paid executive at Churchill the most powerful drinking would adhere to the coronavirus Downs with a institutions in guidelines that were compensation put into place was ludireported in 2018 as Kentucky to use crous. Yet, Gov. Besover $21 million, he has perhaps never his power and influ- hear went along with this plan even while once considered ence to speak up telling us that groups of those that live just a or more should be stone’s throw from about the growing 10 avoided. Immediately, Churchill Downs. it dawned on me that in He has probably racial pandemic the state of Kentucky, never thought that that we face in Churchill Downs has just outside of the power. the iron gates of our state and our If that be the case, I Churchill Downs is would expect the CEO a community in denation. of one of the most spair — homelesspowerful institutions in ness, prostitution, Kentucky to use his power and influence to meth and opioid addiction, drug overdoses speak up about the growing racial pandemic and shootings run rampant. He has probably never thought that I stare out of my windows that we face in our state and our nation.

Unless Carstanjen lives in a bubble, there through security bars in my community is absolutely no way that he does not know because to not have bars on the windows that the Louisville Metro Police Department leaves my home susceptible to crime fueled killed Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black by desperation. And indeed, these are deswoman, in her home. There is no way that perate and challenging times. he does not know about the ongoing protests America finds itself in a dreadful condiin Louisville and the state of confusion, tion fighting two pandemics that cannot be anger and sadness in this city. This is not a seen with the naked eye, but both manifest city that is concerned about horses running, in deadly ways. In March, many of us but it is a city that is demanding justice. retreated to our homes due to the coroUnderstand, that life as we know it doesn’t navirus under the direction of Gov. Andy go back to normal this weekend. We don’t Beshear, and we sheltered in place, waiting have the luxury of pretending we do not see for the unknown. Days turned to weeks and weeks to months, as many of us accepted the what is happening in this nation. We don’t get to ignore everything that is going on reality of our new normal. Life as we knew When you have power and influence, use it for good!

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LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

around us. We don’t get to sip mint juleps served over crushed ice as the nation burns.

The eyes of the nation are on Louisville.

Instead of using this as a moment to speak the truth, Churchill Downs released a Kentucky Derby Health Plan, and buried in it is one sentence about Breonna Taylor.

“The role of the Kentucky Derby and its importance to our community and the nation as a whole takes on even greater significance this year. Over the past several months, our country has faced both the spread of COVID-19 and a moment of national reckoning with racial inequities following the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and others. These important issues deserve thoughtful discussion, continued conversation and subsequent action. To this end, the atmosphere at this year’s Kentucky Derby will not be the celebration it normally is. However, we’re optimistic that this time-honored event, which belongs to our community and our country, will serve as a progressive unifying force that can help bring us together.”

It is easy to sit in an ivory tower and make statements such as the one above; however, I question how horses running will be a progressive unifying force that can bring us together? How does Mr. Carstanjen believe horses running viewed by wealthy individuals will unify a city that has been torn and tattered by years of injustice? When Carstanjen mentioned in his interview below that, “The community in general overwhelmingly supports having the Derby,” what community is he referencing? When he says, “This is an important part of healing,” please tell me how? Tell me how the 146th Derby is an essential part of healing for a city in turmoil? How do I explain to my daughter, who is also named Brianna, when she has dreams that the police kill her during a traffic stop, that the Kentucky Derby will be a great source of healing for her? When he says, “This is an important part of our traditions and culture in our community,” whose traditions and culture is he referencing?

When was the last time Carstanjen spoke to my community? When was the last time Carstanjen dwelled among the people? The people with no titles. The people demanding justice. The people that serve the food. The

people that groom the horses. The people that clean the stables. The people that cut the grass. The people that hand rich people their mint juleps? The everyday people that keep Churchill Downs running?

When was the last time Carstanjen left the comfort of his CEO office and walked around the neighborhood? When was the last time Carstajen asked anyone in this community what can Churchill Downs do to improve this community? How can Churchill Downs be better neighbors?

When is the last time Carstanjen spoke with anyone Black and asked them about the protests? When has he asked anyone Black in this city how they have been marginalized? Has he asked anyone in The West End how their life was affected when this city blocked off streets in The West End during Derby weekend.

If he doesn’t want to start outside of Churchill Downs, perhaps Carstanjen can start in his own backyard. How well has the Kentucky Derby honored the Black jockeys that won the Kentucky Derby? When was the last time he visited African Cemetery No. 2? Why is “My Old Kentucky Home,” a song of a slave being sold down South, still sung at the Kentucky Derby? Why is it OK for people to walk around drunk on Central Avenue during Derby, but if I were to do that same thing in The West End, Smoketown or South End, I would be cited for public intoxication? Why is it OK for the city to block numerous streets during Derby, but protesters cannot march in the street and demand justice for a murdered Black woman?

Then, go deeper and look at your organization. How many Black people or People of Color are in positions of leadership? How many Black people or People of Color are on the board with influence? How many Black people or People of Color are in positions where they have decision-making power? How many Black people or People of Color are on staff beyond the cafeteria, gift shop and stables?

Understand, Churchill Downs, as with many institutions in America, stands on the backs of Black people. According to “The Kentucky Derby’s Forgotten Black Jockeys,” “Former slaves and their sons starred at Churchill Downs in the 1800s.

VIEWS

Not only was 1875 winner Aristides ridden by an African-American, he was trained by a former slave known for superb horsemanship, Ansel Williamson. Much like the equines he conditioned, Williamson was sold from owner to owner. In 1864, R.A. Alexander, proprietor of the famed Woodburn Stud Farm, purchased Williamson. After emancipation, the former slave continued to work with his former master as did a standout black jockey named Ed Brown who would train the 1877 Kentucky Derby winner Baden-Baden and eventually operate his own racing stable. By 1904, Black riders had been virtually banned from the major racetracks, including Churchill Downs and the complexion of the Kentucky Derby had been changed forever. Black participation dwindled and no African-American rode the race between 1921 and 2000, when Marlon St. Julien guided Curule to a seventh-place finish.”

So, when Carstanjen speaks of tradition and culture, take a good, hard look at the complete tradition and culture of Churchill Downs and ask yourself: Are we as an institution holding on to some longheld traditions rooted in racism, or are we contributing to this city and state in way that will help move the needle when it comes to race relations in 2020 and beyond?

To be clear, facing these questions and challenges doesn’t start with anyone under you, Bill. It begins with you. You are the proverbial jockey. You are steering the team.

You are the CEO and your team will follow your lead. How you lead in this time remains to be seen. We have seen numerous sports institutions use this moment to speak truth to power. What will you do?

I challenge Carstanjen to hold true to his statement. If he truly believes, “These important issues deserve thoughtful discussion, continued conversation and subsequent action,” then he should start them and then follow through with action. He has the power. He has the influence. He has the resources. Do better than making a statement about Breonna Taylor buried in a coronavirus plan of action. Breonna Taylor and those in this city fighting for justice deserved more from this iconic institution than a few sentences among Derby coronavirus health regulations. Stand by what you have said, or the 146th Kentucky Derby’s running comes off as, “Qu’ils mangent de la brioche,” better known as, let them eat cake. • Hannah L. Drake is an author, poet and spoken word artist. Follow her at writesomeshit.com and on Twitter at hannahdrake628.

THE MIDWESTERNIST

‘FACHIN PARTE SOON’... HOPE I DID NOT MISS IT

By Dan Canon | leo@leoweekly.com day wishes from the safety of their cars. The A FEW MONTHS INTO QUARANTINE, on problem is that we live on a dead-end street. the flatbed of my copier, I found a crude I don’t mean a cul de sac; there’s an actual drawing of three characters marching purwall at the end. A drunk driver plowed posefully to the left. It looks like a painting through it a couple of months ago, but he on an ancient Greek vase, though not silwas running from the police, and smashhouetted, because then you couldn’t see the ing into walls to get away from cops isn’t buttons on Mickey Mouse’s shorts. All the necessarily frowned upon here in Southern characters are saying “OMG,” apparently in Indiana. We actually think it’s kind of cool. response to the gigantic message emblaStill, you’re not supposed to pass through, zoned across the top of the page: “FACHIN so the parade participants had to do a quick PARTE SOON.” qualifying lap, then circle back around for Seven years of interpreting the grunts, the “real” “parade.” squeaks, slurred babble and Neolithic Even without the orthography of our dead ends, if you’ve three little girls led me to the conclusion We project so much attended one of these makeshift parades that there was to be a of our own grief for a child’s birthday, “fashion party.” We you know that they didn’t know when it and anxiety onto are both profoundly would take place, just sweet and sad all at that it was ominously our kids that it’s once. People you’d “SOON.” worth wondering if normally be drinking My dread over the impending event they are grieving or with drive by slowly enough that you can nearly made me read their signs, see anxious at all. I’m forget my middle their streamers and daughter’s fourth not even sure what funny hats and maybe birthday, which was, even identify them. in fact, soon after this a ‘party’ means to The whole thing is notice was surreptithem now. Looking over in 15 minutes. tiously copied and the cars disaptaped all over the at a bunch of heads Then, pear, coming back house. “Is the fashion sometime maybe, but party for your sister’s on Zoom? who knows when. birthday?” I asked Soon? the oldest. “Ugh, no, The kids scampered away from a woman daddy. She gets a birthday again?” who’s been like an aunt to them, but they Have you ever tried to put a bouquet of didn’t recognize her in the “Mortal Kombat” helium balloons in the back of a minivan? mask, nor did they understand that the thing It’s like wrestling a bear with a dozen heads, wrapped in latex she was hurling into our one of which occasionally explodes. I did it, yard was a carefully sanitized birthday though. In an annual ritual of paternal devogift. Our three girls all congregated around tion, traditionally performed at our local another van whose driver stopped to shout Party City, I masked up to rob the universe muffled pleasantries with my wife, while of a few precious drops of normalcy. They didn’t last long; I took them and the balloons two of their friends were hanging out of the windows. They handed dandelions back and back to a house where no one was furiforth to each other, laughing like it was a ously cooking and cleaning and decorating real party, while all the parents were parain anticipation of the usual invading army lyzed because we didn’t know what the rules of tiny freeloaders dragging their captive were, or if we were going to follow them. adults. “To hell with it,” we said, “no one is Then, we saw a whole class full of kids coming over this year. Let the spirits of dust spill out into a school playground less than and clutter and gift wrap carnage have the a 100 steps from our house, some of them whole damn house, now and forever.” masked and some not. We’ll all have to We settled on a parade for her, so that explain that one, we thought. We did a pretty parents and friends could scream their birth-

good job of fielding Easter — that’s easy.

The introductory birthday seems to have gone OK. But Halloween is coming and Thanksgiving and Santa Claus and another birthday and another birthday and another.

It’s OK, we keep saying. Things will be back to normal soon.

We project so much of our own grief and anxiety onto our kids that it’s worth wondering if they are grieving or anxious at all. I’m not even sure what a “party” means to them now. Looking at a bunch of heads on Zoom?

A parade of sedans and SUVs with faceless drivers? Shouting at each other under a gazebo for 10 minutes while everyone eats their own sandwich out of a plastic bag?

What will they miss? What will they be expecting? What do we need to explain?

I don’t know what “soon” means to them either. Hell, I don’t know what it means to me.

When we were still driving everywhere, one of them would dump some milky substance in the back of my car at least once a month. For a day or two, the scent is barely noticeable. For a week, it is the worst thing anyone has ever smelled. The creatures in their booster seats howl at me, asking when the stench will go away. “Soon.” Then, all of a sudden it’s gone, like it was never there to begin with, and we don’t think about it until it happens again.

Soon is no longer a source of anxiety — or hope — once you forget what you were waiting for. We say “they’re growing up too soon,” and yes, that makes me anxious.

But already I forget their little sayings, their malapropisms, their ever-vanishing, babyish peculiarities, unless they have been documented somewhere. And even then I refuse to look at the proof, because thinking too much about that kind of loss probably isn’t healthy.

Better to look ahead.

I know there’s a FACHIN PARTE SOON because the notices are still taped all over the house. I can’t take them down, because I’m still waiting for the party. I hope I didn’t miss it. • Dan Canon is a civil rights lawyer and law professor. “Midwesticism”is his shortdocumentary series about Midwesterners who are making the world a better place.

Watch it at: patreon.com/dancanon.

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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NEWS & ANALYSIS

ONE OF THE ‘BLACK SIX’:

PEOPLE DON’T CHANGE BECAUSE YOU ASK THEM TO CHANGE

By Danielle Grady | dgrady@leoweekly.com

THE WORST, BEST & MOST ABSURD THORN: ANOTHER BID TO SMEAR BREONNA

There is a dispute over whether Jamarcus Glover was offered a plea deal if he would say that Breonna Taylor was in his “organized crime syndicate.” Jefferson Commonwealth’s Attorney Tom Wine said it was a draft and denied Glover was offered a deal to implicate her by name. But Glover told The Courier-Journal that is not true. “I turned it down from day one when I seen the names on there,” he said. The final plea sheet, which Wine said was offered to Glover, did not name Taylor but would have required him to admit that her apartment was used to keep money from drug dealing.

Both deal versions seem to push the theory that Taylor was part of drug dealing. Even if true, how could that excuse the police for killing her in her own home?

ABSURD: AMY, USE YOUR WORDS

Manfred Reid Sr., one of the ‘Black Six,’ holds a photograph of him and a codefendant and lawyers from their trial. | PHOTO BY KATHRYN HARRINGTON.

THE YEAR when Manfred Reid Sr. was born, 1936, was the same year that the last Black man was publicly hanged by the justice system in the United States — and it happened in his home state of Kentucky.

“So, my socialization as a child from my parents was being aware of the risk of being harmed by just moving around within the community where you lived,” Reid said.

Thirty-two years later, in 1968, this lurking threat of unprovoked violence caught up to Reid, who by then was the owner of a profitable real estate business. A Louisville police officer attacked Reid with a blackjack while he was checking to see if a friend who was being questioned was OK. Reid sustained several strikes and then was arrested.

The officer was suspended at first but then reinstated by a Civil Service Board. This sparked what activists called the Louisville Rebellion: close to one week of protest from a Black community sick of police violence and

8

THORNS & ROSES

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

racial inequality.

Protesters received no concessions, and the city charged Reid and five other Black people, most of whom he barely knew, with conspiracy to destroy property and to blow up West End chemical plants. A judge found the “Black Six,” as they were called, not guilty, but Reid had already lost everything: his license, the business, his wife and support from the community.

Before 1968, Reid had actively supported the civil rights movement and had even worked with an attorney to eliminate restrictions for Black people who wanted to buy homes from white people. But, Reid didn’t consider himself an activist.

“I never participated in demonstrations. You know, as a business person you just don’t do that,” he said. “…

It just wasn’t my temperament to get involved like that.”

The events of 1968 sent Reid on a life journey that crescendoed with him becoming a Louisville affordable housing advocate, a role that he still fulfills

at 84 as the long-time chair of the Louisville Metro Housing Authority.

In those same 52 years, the world has changed in some ways but remained the same in others, Reid observes. Police, he believes, are still at odds with the Black community.

And, Breonna Taylor’s shooting death is proof of that. But, as Louisville is caught up in its biggest racial justice movement since 1968 — inspired this time by Taylor instead of Reid — he sees hope for progress.

SOCIETY’S JOURNEY

Reid believes the culture of law enforcement in America is the same as it was in 1968 when he was beaten by an officer. And, he says it’s the same as when publicly funded forces first emerged in the United States to protect property and preserve slavery.

Essentially, police have never considered Black people to be human, Reid said, and their duty is to guard the white community from the Black

U.S. Senate candidate Amy McGrath skipped the Kentucky Farm Bureau debate with U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell. Explaining which debates she would attend, she said: “When making decisions about how we run our campaigns, we should be thoughtful about being inclusive ... “ Her campaign told The Courier Journal scheduling is why she missed the KFB debate. Why didn’t they give the real reason? The KFB is homophobic .

ABSURD: OUR AG IS A LIVING TYPO

When asked what about tRump liking a tweet that supported the Kenosha killer, state Attorney General Daniel Cameron said on “Face The Nation”: “Well, let me just say that I condone violence in all of its forms.” The host asked twice before he corrected himself to say “condemn.” We hope his Taylor investigation is more precise.

THORN: MCCONNELL, WHERE’S THE BEEF?

Why should U.S. Sen. Mitch “No, No, No” McConnell not lie during his turn at the Republican National Convention? Seems everyone else did. He claimed Democrats pushing the Green New Deal want a hamburger law.

“They want to tell you what kind of car you can drive.

What sources of information are credible. And even how many hamburgers you can eat.” And, then McConnell’s Sansabelt slacks caught on fire.

THORN: TRUMP WINS KY, REASON NO. 46 A farmer in Jackson County carved this 10acre corn maze, The Lexington Herald-Leader reported.

NEWS & ANALYSIS

community.

He was reminded of this when Louisville police killed Taylor, a Black woman, in a A PERSONAL JOURNEY botched raid on March 13.

At 10 years old, Reid became an orphan.

But, the protests Reid is seeing in His mother and father had moved the response are different than what he’s witfamily from Reid’s hometown near Hazard, nessed before. The demonstrators are more Kentucky, to the Parkland neighborhood of diverse; the protesters during the Louisville Louisville in 1944.

Rebellion were mostly Black. Demonstrators Reid’s father, a coal miner, died of black also maintain a camaraderie that continues lung in 1945. His mother passed in 1947. over time, Reid said. “We didn’t have that.”

Raised from there by his uncle, Reid Reid thinks Taylor, unlike him, will knew he had to work to survive. receive justice — that the police officers Even before his parents died, Reid sold who shot their weapons will be indicted and, newspapers. From hopefully, convicted. there, he transitioned On May 8, 1968, There are aspects of to delivering grocerthe 2020 protests that ies. Then, to selling Reid was driving worry Reid, particushoes and working as larly the reaction of east on Broadway a janitor at Holiday the far-right, who have Shoe Store on Fourth with two fellow brought their guns Street. Reid’s manager to counter-protests.

Black businessmen fired him from that Black militias like the job after Reid praised Not Fucking Around (Walter “Pete” the Brown v. Board of Coalition have done Supreme Cosby and Luther Education the same.

Court decision.

“This appears to me Reid had to drop Wilson) when they to be a precursor of a out of Bellarmine Colmuch more difficult saw a friend being lege because he didn’t time to come as a have enough money questioned by racial conflict between to stay in school. But, the races,” Reid said. police. The friend after getting married “I hope that’s not true. and having kids, a was a Black teacher friend persuaded Reid But, if they’re both going around with to become a real estate named Charles guns — both sides — salesman. They solicand the government Thomas. Reid didn’t ited home buyers for a being what it is today, realty company while know this, but it only takes a spark studying for their for a bunch of people examination. police said they had salesman to get killed.”

Reid later passed his But, Reid thinks broker exam, too. stopped Thomas it’s possible for law It was a fruitful because he was enforcement to change time to start a realty if officials follow the when Reid driving a car similar company lead of the community. began his own busi“Law enforceness in his late 20s to one used in a ment is an instrument or early 30s. Almost burglary. of government,” he every Sunday, Reid said. “So, the governfound himself showing ment has to begin to join the community in houses. the initiating changes that create a tranquil “It was quite lively,” he said. “There community.” was the idea of Blacks could buy houses Flash-points like Reid’s assault and anywhere in The West End, and that created Taylor’s death can create the opportunity for a sense of excitement. And people wanted to those cultural shifts. get out on the weekends and on Sundays to “People don’t change overnight,” Reid see what they could find.” said. “And they don’t change because you It was also an important moment for civil ask them to change. There has to be circumrights. Black people across the country were stances in time that creates the opportunity calling for equal treatment. In Louisville, by which people can begin to take considercivil rights activists were organizing sit-ins ation of their existence and find a new path.” at Fourth Street lunch counters.

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LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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NEWS & ANALYSIS

THE ASSAULT

On May 8, 1968, Reid was driving east on Broadway with two fellow Black businessmen (Walter “Pete” Cosby and Luther Wilson) when they saw a friend being questioned by police. The friend was a Black teacher named Charles Thomas. Reid didn’t know this, but police said they had stopped Thomas because he was driving a car similar to one used in a burglary.

Reid, Cosby and Wilson stopped the car and got out to make sure nothing happened to Thomas. “We were aware of the risk we faced just by trying to offer our assistance to him,” Reid said, “but we try to do that.”

They addressed Thomas, asking him if he needed help and watched as he got arrested.

“We said, ‘We’ll come up and get you out on bail,’” Reid said. “Then, the one police officer, Michael Clifford, he jumped up and said, ‘Get out of the street.’ So, we started complying with him.”

But Clifford didn’t calm down. He took out his blackjack and hit Reid. By that time, around 200 Black community members had gathered to watch the scene, yelling from the sidelines, according to the UK’s Notable Kentucky African Americans database.

Reid and the officer tussled, Reid said. Another blow followed, possibly even a third or fourth one — Reid isn’t sure. He used his arms to shield himself. It would have been normal, expected even, for Reid to be mangled or killed by the officer, he said. But, the assault ended in bruises and a night in jail.

The officer was suspended. Reid was left with a feeling that he did something wrong. It might have been over. But, something much worse was coming for Reid.

Attorneys Dan Taylor, Robert Delahanty and William Allison with Sam Hawkins and Manfred Reid. | PHOTO COURTESY OF MANFRED REID.

of James Cortez, an activist that Bryant and Sims had invited to Louisville for the protests. Bryant and Sims were members of the Black Urban League of Kentucky, which held the first protest of the Rebellion.

Together, they were dubbed the Black Six. The reason they were indicted, Reid’s sure, was racism.

Their court case continued for around two years. A Louisville judge eventually ruled the Black Six not guilty. But THE AFTERMATH during that time, Reid’s life had collapsed.

On May 23, the Civil Service Board reinstated Clifford, The Real Estate Commission, a and Black Louisville revolted. conservative organization, stripped Over 2,000 National Guardsmen No one wanted him of his license. Everything else were called in. Around 400 people to associate with important to him soon followed. were arrested, two teens were killed No one wanted to associate with and property damage abounded.

Reid, even the Reid, even the rest of the Black Six. If Reid did not participate in the they did, it would just invite suspicion protests. rest of the Black from investigators.

Although, one day, when the “When they break you,” Reid said, Six. If they did, it crowds came to 20th Street, he left his “whenever you begin to lose your home to watch from a distance. would just invite banking credibility and you lose your As Reid watched the city burn in community support out of fear and his name, he realized that he might suspicion from you lose the family, you’re alone. And be in trouble of his own. He tried to you just simply have to begin to try to investigators. assess how much. After the protests, he rebuild your life.” got his answer.

Reid found out by reading the newspaper that a grand jury convened by Commonwealth’s Attorney Edwin A. Schroering Jr. had indicted him and five other people for conspiracy.

Reid lived a mile from The West End chemical plants he was accused of plotting to blow up. And, he personally knew only one other supposed co-conspirator: Pete Cosby, his friend who he conducted business with.

Reid knew of Ruth Bryant, Robert Kuyu Sims and Samuel Hawkins — all local Black activists who lived in the neighborhood. But, before the protests, he had no knowledge

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LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

FROM BUSINESSMAN TO ACTIVIST

The court case that took everything from Reid also gave him a new purpose.

Left with nothing else, Reid turned to activism. One of his first positions echoed his time in the housing business.

He became a member of the West End Community Council, which attempted to curb white flight in Louisville’s Western neighborhoods. Reid joined while still fighting his court case.

During that same period, he started working with Anne

and Carl Braden’s Southern Conference Educational Fund, or SCEF. To explain why he got into activism, Reid pulled out a resolution he helped pass at a SCEF Board of Director’s meeting. The first sentence reads, “The essence of freedom in any society is the power to determine policy both economically and politically and the control of cultural development throughout the community.”

“That’s what I wrote in 1970,” Reid said. “That was my perception of social change and economic change in The West End of Louisville. So, the more I realized the depth of those social issues that I was entangled in, I began to find support, counsel and direction through SCEF.” Almost 20 years later, after Reid was forced to move into Beecher Terrace, he became the president of the public housing developments’ resident association. Then, Mayor David Armstrong appointed Reid to be a commissioner of the Louisville Metro Housing Authority. Since 2000, Reid has been the chair of the board.

In his time on the board, Reid is proud of updating, and in some cases replacing, almost all of the city’s publiclyowned housing complexes: Cotter and Lang Homes, Sheppard Square and Clarksdale. Critics argue that some of these projects have displaced residents, but Reid stands by them.

His time, though, is almost over. Following his business instincts, he’s focusing on how to set up the Housing Authority for the future.

“Based on the mission of the housing authority, how do I begin to participate in setting the stage for the future of housing production and an attack on poverty, providing livable wages and new ideas in terms of home ownership as it relates to marketing and financing?” Reid said. “These are the visions that we need to have for the future.” •

“Our box is right next to our drive up window, so we have people come by and grab the LEO while they are getting their food. I love the LEO, it’s such a Louisville based organization and we are happy to support them!” John Stamper

Chicago City Pizza

2601 Charlestown Rd, New Albany, IN 47150 (812) 725-8407 www.facebook.com/mommaspizzaandmore If you'd like a LEO Weekly rack at your business, email distribution@leoweekly.com LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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‘NO JUSTICE, NO DERBY’: WHY ACTIVISTS WANT IT CANCELED AND WILL PROTEST IT

By Danielle Grady | dgrady@leoweekly.com WHEN DERBY DAY arrives Sept. 5, fans won’t be in the stands, but millions of TV viewers and the national and international press will be there.

And that’s why activists seeking justice for Breonna Taylor say they have chosen that day to stage protests in Louisville.

A few local and national racial justice groups actually want Churchill Downs to cancel the Derby because they believe the city should not be celebrating. But if nothing changes, they say they will be protesting near the track (they have declined to say whether they will go to Churchill Downs), likely along with others who are counter-protesting.

The Not Fucking Around Coalition, an Atlanta-based Black militia that brought hundreds of its armed members to Louisville last month, has announced it plans to return on Derby Day with even more marchers.

“If you want to send a message, sometimes you don’t burn down the city — you burn down their wallets,” said the group’s leader, John “Grandmaster Jay” Johnson, who also

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LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

The ‘Good Trouble Tuesday’ march last month, organized by Until Freedom, passed by Churchill Downs.

Will protesters return to the track on Derby day? | PHOTO BY KATHRYN HARRINGTON.

called the Derby “a strategic date” in a YouTube video.

Also planning to protest is the local Justice and Freedom Coalition, organized by the Rev. Timothy Findley Jr., who believes: “No justice, no Derby.” He will be joined by Until Freedom, a New York-based social justice group that was behind the occupation of the front lawn at Attorney General Daniel Cameron’s house, and No Justice No Peace Louisville, a local grassroots group. The three organizations are participating in a demonstration called #NoDerby146, which is meeting less than a mile from the track. Findley said he anticipates the protest going “mobile,” but he wouldn’t say whether the demonstrators will march to Churchill Downs.

For decades, protesters have used the horse race that Hunter S. Thompson called “decadent and depraved” as a platform for airing their grievances — notably, in 1967 when Martin Luther King Jr. planned to attend a demonstration on Derby Day to protest housing disparities in Louisville and other racial injustices.

“The reason why is because it’s a worldwide event. The

eyes of the world are on Louisville, Kentucky, if anything, for once a year,” said Findley.

He told LEO that now is not the time to have a citywide celebration like the Derby, even though Churchill Downs has nixed spectators at the race because of COVID-19.

“This is not a festive time. This is not a celebratory time,” Findley said. “People are hurting, people are dying, an entire community is outraged because there has been no justice for Breonna Taylor. And there needs to be a real poignant sign, message, that is put out there and people can see that we’re taking all of these things seriously.”

In a letter posted to social media, Findley wrote that there will be protests “throughout the city during Derby until justice is served.” Justice, Findley told LEO, would be for the city to arrest all of the officers who fired their weapons in the Taylor shooting. It would be an investigation of the Place-Based Investigation Squad that targeted Taylor’s exboyfriend’s trap house, the judge who signed the warrant for officers to storm her apartment, and an investigation of what

Fencing has been put up in front of Churchill Downs in preparation for the Derby, although the race will be run without fans this year. | PHOTO BY KAELAN DAVIS.

the mayor knew and when — and subsequent consequences for all.

It is unlikely Derby will be canceled.

Churchill Downs did not comment for this story. But in an interview with CNBC, Churchill Downs Inc. CEO Bill Carstanjen said that most Louisville community members support Derby continuing this year.

“The feedback has been overwhelming to us through the community that this should go on, that this is an important part of healing, that this is an important part of the traditions and culture in our community,” he said.

Churchill Downs President Kevin Flanery has called the Derby a “progressive unifying force” as the country and Louisville struggle with racial injustice.

Carstanjen’s and Flanery’s words about the importance of the Derby and its traditions do not resonate with Louisville’s Black community today. Leaders and activists with whom LEO spoke to said that Black people have been excluded from the moneyed parts of the annual event.

“They’re talking about, ‘it brings the community together,’” said Aaron Jordan, a co-founder of No Justice No Peace Louisville, who is Black. “The things that bring the community together are the community celebrations that precede the Derby, like the parade. And those things have nothing to do with these millionaires that come to town, these ambassadors and these royals and celebrities who come. They’re not, you know, being asked to help develop urban communities. They come here, they spend a ton of money, they get drunk, they participate in sex trafficking and things alike and then they leave.”

Findley said that he draws inspiration from the civil rights leaders of the ‘60s and their actions, including their Derby protest.

“I think that many people around the city and around the country need to go back and check many of the people that we have deified — Muhammad Ali, John Lewis, Dr. Martin Luther King and others — and really look at what they stood for,” he said.

A HISTORY OF PROTESTS

The Louisville that the Rev. Charles Elliott moved to in the ‘50s was deeply segregated.

“I had to get off the sidewalk to let white people by in Alabama,” said Elliott, who is now 86, “And when I came to Louisville, I thought that I had got out of that segregated state.”

He hadn’t — not really. One day soon after moving, Elliott went to a theater on Fourth Street to purchase tickets for himself and his wife.

A woman employee told them, “We don’t sell [N-word] tickets.”

That institutional racism is what Elliott, a pastor at King Solomon Missionary Baptist Church, wanted to protest during the Kentucky Derby in 1967. He and other local civil rights leaders had been pushing for a city law to eliminate discriminatory housing practices, and Derby seemed like the perfect opportunity to draw more attention to the cause. Big, national names such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Muhammad Ali were going to help them disrupt it.

“The Derby would have people from all over the world,

and we wanted people to know our struggle,” Elliott said.

Several days before the race, a group of protesters staged a sit-in on Churchill Downs’ track, vowing to return on Derby day. The mayor summoned the National Guard, and the Ku Klux Klan threatened to meet protesters at the track.

King decided to relocate the planned demonstration to downtown out of fear of violence. It took until the end of the year for Louisville to pass a fair housing ordinance. Today, Elliott thinks the 1967 rally would have had more impact if it had occurred at Churchill Downs.

Other Derby protests include several organized by Louisville’s outspoken civil rights leader Rev. Louis Coleman.

Last year, a Louisville advocate for the homeless, Chad Caine, marched around the perimeter of Churchill Downs on Derby, hoping to call attention to the city’s annual attempts to clear highly visible camps before the first Saturday in May. Caine went alone, but he managed to collect 25 people to walk with him at various points during the day, and his effort was covered by WHAS.

DERBY IS ‘GRAND TRADITION’

No spectators at the Derby is “another blow” to Louisville’s large hospitality industry struggling during the pandemic, said Karen Williams, president and CEO of Louisville Tourism. But, the city could still benefit from the race running without fans.

“Louisville’s fortunate to have America’s longest continually held sports event,” she said. “You know the brand LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

13

awareness associated with this grand tradition is something that every city vies for.”

The Louisville tourism bureau plans to do “lots” of digital marketing surrounding the Derby this year, which Williams hopes will translate to future visitors.

Williams said that she supports the local demonstrations.

She also said she sympathizes with and understands the sentiment behind the call to cancel Derby, but she considers the race an important tradition.

“Where I understand what they’re saying, I also think this could be something that hopefully people could have some normality of having Derby that day and being virtual,” she said.

For its part in coming to terms with the country’s racial injustices, Louisville Tourism has partnered with the Louisville Urban League to provide sensitivity training to local businesses, and it has created a Black Tourism Council to evaluate the bureau’s operations moving forward.

Kevin Triplett, a Democratic councilman whose district includes Churchill Downs, said canceling the Derby would be “unfortunate,” and it might lead some people to withdraw their support for the protesters’ cause.

“I mean, you’ve got a lot of division, a lot of resentment.

We’re so divided right now, not just Louisville, Kentucky but everywhere,” he said. “We’re divided with political differences and ideas, and there’s just so much unrest and upheaval right now. Canceling the Derby? I have to think about that — it’s just, I think there’d be a whole lot of resentment.”

DERBY ISN’T FOR US ANYWAY, PROTESTERS SAY Black people could attend the Derby even in its earliest days, but their seating was segregated before 1961, located near the race’s starting point, according to Chris Goodlett, director of curatorial and educational affairs at the Kentucky Derby Museum. That and the infield, which was relatively open to everyone, were the only places the Derby’s Black spectators could go.

For some, the Derby seems even more segregated today than it was in the 1800s. Findley, who is Black, said his community has parties, but does not celebrate the Derby by drinking mint juleps or watching the horses race — the way Churchill Downs markets it.

Jordan, with No Justice No Peace, said his Derby includes barbecuing, concerts and betting. But he’s never been to the track. That’s only for the rich, he said.

Cruising on Broadway used to be a popular Derby pastime for Louisville’s Black community, too, said Lamont Collins, the founder and CEO of Louisville’s Roots 101 African-American Museum. But, the city outlawed that in 2006 after a shooting death and concerns about criminal activities.

Also, Louisville’s Black community doesn’t benefit economically from the race in the same way that white people do, either, activists said.

“Over the years, since 1967, the Black community has always tried to find ways to make money from the Derby economically like the white communities did,” said Collins, “and we had a few major galas on Derby Day. But those wasn’t for those that were underprivileged. That was for the Blacks that were privileged and the Blacks that were part of

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LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

No fans are attending, but fencing surrounds Churchill Downs in preparation for the Derby. | PHOTO BY KAELAN DAVIS.

corporate America.”

Collins has been the president of one of those “privileged” organizations, the 100 Black Men of Louisville.

Collins also pointed out that Churchill Downs only appears to have one person of color in either senior management or on its board of directors.

That board member is Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman, CEO of Heartland Coca-Cola Bottling Co. And, Findley observed, the riches that Derby brings to Louisville haven’t seemed to benefit The West End much.

But Triplett said that the economic benefit of Derby helps out everyone in Louisville by contributing to a “vibrant downtown” and a thriving hospitality industry.

“If you don’t live next to it, you think it doesn’t affect you, you don’t reap any benefits or rewards because of Derby,” he said.“ … Well, it does you some good.”

Williams, with Louisville Tourism, said that her organization uses money from tourism, including from Derby, to promote “the entire community.” In The West End, that means promoting Portland businesses to visitors and, in the future, attracting events to the Louisville Urban League’s Sports and Learning Complex being built in Russell.

Triplett believes, though there are detractors, the majority of Louisville likes the Derby, including many of those who live near Churchill Downs who host parties around Derby time and park cars for a yearly influx of extra cash.

PHOTO BY KAELAN DAVIS.

THIS YEAR’S PROTESTS

On July 25, Until Freedom staged a protest, making stops near Churchill Downs and the Louisville Metro Police Department Training Academy. They were prevented from going farther by a line of police when protesters tried to cross the Central Avenue bridge.

Those who stayed in the street were arrested — 64 in total including Findley, who says he was the first. Jordan was there, too.

The march was peaceful. Findley says he believes in peaceful protesting.

The demonstration, called “Good Trouble Tuesday,” could portend what will happen on Derby day.

Protesters with the Justice and Freedom Coalition, Until Freedom and No Justice No Peace are meeting at 4:30 p.m. at South Central Park.

It’s not clear yet where the Not Fucking Around Coalition

Protesters at Churchill Downs during the ‘Good Trouble Tuesday’ march.

is planning to meet and march.

The Not Fucking Around Coalition is returning to Louisville, its leader said, because Attorney General Cameron has yet to finish his investigation into Taylor’s case.

The more organizations, the better, Findley said, when asked about his thoughts on the NFAC coming.

But, just like in 1967, far-right counter-protesters are threatening to be on the scene, too.

The Angry Viking, a conservative social media influencer, has posted on Facebook saying that he and others will be in Louisville that day to “protect” the city. Last time the Not Fucking Around Coalition came, they were met by the armed Three Percenters milita.

Elliott, the pastor who participated in the 1967 Derby rally, said that the proliferation of weapons at today’s protests worry him.

So far, this hasn’t deterred the protesters of 2020.

“We’re going to be out and just enjoying a lot of great walks all over the city,” said Findley. “It’s going to be a beautiful day for that.” •

Last month’s ‘Good Trouble Tuesday’ march passed by Churchill Downs, before the fencing was installed. | PHOTO BY KATHRYN HARRINGTON. LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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STAFF PICKS WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 2, 3, 5

Derby From Afar

This Saturday is Derby day, except it’s NEIGH! not the first Saturday in May, and no spectators will be at the track. Soo... some weird, bizarro Derby day, but Derby day nonetheless. Here are some Derbythemed events that are trooping along.

Derby Week Dinner & Drag (Sept. 2) | Christy’s Garden 720 Brent St. | paristown.com/ happenings | $30-$120 | 7-9 p.m.

Drag shows are back, baby. This one benefits the Louisville Youth Group.

Performers are Leah Halston, Gilda Wabbit, Vanessa Demornay, Karmen Kazzi, Nicole Jackson Valentino and SYIMONE. Masks are required to enter.

100 Days of Resistance At #InjusticeSquarePark Jefferson Square Park | 301 S. Sixth St. | Search Facebook | Free | 6-11 p.m.

This Friday will be the 100th day that protesters have marched Louisville’s streets in Breonna Taylor’s name. And still, the police officers who NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE deployed their weapons in the raid that killed her have not been arrested or faced hardly any official consequences. Demonstrators will commemorate the event with yet another day of protests. There will be a march at 6 p.m. from a TBA location to Jefferson Square Park, also known as Injustice Square. At the park, all community members will have a chance to speak. There will also be music, performances and moments of silence. —Danielle PHOTO BY KATHRYN HARRINGTON. Grady

SATURDAY, SEPT. 5, 12

Fall Plant Sale At Idlewild Butter�ly Farm

Idlewild Butterfly Farm | 1100 Logan St. | Search Facebook | Prices vary | noon-4 p.m.

Divine Derby Sips & Spreads (Sept. 3) | Online | gck.org/events | Free | 7-8 p.m.

Blogger JCP Eats will teach you how to throw a Derby party at home with cocktails, mocktails and appetizers, since you can’t have your own celebration at the track.

Kentucky Derby At-Home (Sept. 5) | Your house | kentuckyderby.com/party | Free | 2:30 p.m.

Churchill Downs Inc. can’t invite you to the track, but it does have a list of Derby recipes and activities on its website that you can use for a house party, including a DIY paper flower fascinator tutorial and instructions on how to make a bourbon rice crispy treat or a chicken kabob with mint pistachio pesto. The Derby starts broadcasting on NBC at 2:30 p.m., with a 7:01 p.m. post time.

Derby with a Purpose (Sept. 5) | Westport Village | 1315 Herr Lane | Search Facebook | $30-$50 (per table) | 5:30-7:30 p.m.

It’s an evening of food and racing, with proceeds going to The LEE Initiative, a restaurant workers relief program. A table comes with one Steak & Bourbon mint julep per person, a BoomBozz Pizza pie and “sweet treats” from Napa River Grill — plus, the race will be screened.

Kentucky Derby Braai (Sept. 5) | A Taste of Africa | 2407 Brownsboro Road | $12 adults, $8 children | 6 p.m.-midnight A Taste of Africa is hosting a South African barbecue, or braai, for Derby day, featuring homemade food and live music. Chairs and tables will be provided, but you can bring your own folding seating for outdoor sittin’. —LEO

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FRIDAY, SEPT. 4

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

If you want all of the beautiful songbirds, hummingbirds and FALL IS COMING other critters stopping by your house this fall, you better make sure your yard or garden has the appropriate seasonal foliage that they’re looking for.

Fortunately, the expert entomologists at Idlewild Butterfly Farm can help you find the perfect plants, flowers and edible greens to accommodate your landscape or garden aesthetic, while also supporting the needs of local wildlife. Go online any time to browse and order. Curbside pickup or in-person shopping is available Tuesday and Saturday, noon to 4 p.m., and delivery options are available on their website (idlewildbutterflyfarm.com). —LEO

SATURDAY, SEPT. 5

Ya Ya Highlands Cleanup

Original Highlands | Search Facebook | Free | 11 a.m.

Keep Louisville weird, by keeping it clean? Seth MacFarlane, creator of the animated comedy show LEND A HAND “Family Guy,” once said that incorporating high-quality scores from orchestras allows him to get away with jokes that otherwise wouldn’t be permitted on network television. Get it? So, why wouldn’t that same approach apply to our city? Keeping our city clean should allow us to get away with more… weird. Local rock and soul band Zu Zu Ya Ya adopted a segment of Bardstown Road, and they’re inviting you to join them Saturday morning stroll and clean, from Highland Avenue to Kenilworth Place. They will meet at Highlands Taproom at 1056 Bardstown Road and clean their adopted strip of Bardstown Road. —Aaron Yarmuth

STAFF PICKS

SATURDAY, SEPT. 5

THROUGH OCT. 17

100 Miles For Breonna Taylor #1

Tom Pfannerstill, Emily Church And Ray Kleinhelter

Big Four Bridge, Waterfront Park | 1101 River Road | Search Facebook | Free | 9 a.m.

The 2020 movement for racial TWO WHEELS justice calls for equality in every aspect of society: From equality in justice, education and the workplace, even the backs of NBA players’ jerseys, this moment requires constant reminders and declarations of support. Make your Saturday morning bike ride count, not just for leisure and exercise but also for equality and justice. Leaving from the Big Four Bridge, Louisville Cyclists Supporting Racial Justice will embark on a 100-mile ride to meet up with another group on a 150-mile ride from Cincinnati to Louisville. It will be a 12- to 15-mph, moderate pace according to organizers, who also recommend only riders with some long distance experience attempt to join for the full 100 miles. Check with the Facebook event page for any updates on time, as well as the GPS route. Remember, every bit of support matters in the fight for equality. —LEO

WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 9

Racial Justice Series — Healthy At Home?

Healthy At Work?

Online | alicenter.org/calendar | Free ($10 suggested donation) | 5-6 p.m.

In the name and spirit of Muhammad Ali’s famous declaration, “I am America,” The Muhammad Ali Center GREATNESS is launching a new, programmatic series that “will offer critical analysis of the history and intersectionality of social justice issues, while offering action steps for those wanting to create positive social change.” The inaugural event features panelists T Benicio Gonzales of the Louisville Center for Health Equity, Trinidad Jackson, doctoral candidate at the UofL School of Public Health and Dr. Brandy Kelly Pryor from the Humana Foundation. It will be moderated by Dr. Steven Kniffley Jr. from the Spalding University Center for Behavioral Health. The program will run every other Wednesday and be made available on the Ali Center website (alicenter.org) after each event. The Bust photographic portrait of Muhammad Ali event is free but registration is required. in 1967. | WORLD JOURNAL TRIBUNE PHOTO BY IRA ROSENBERG. —Aaron Yarmuth

Galerie Hertz | 1253 S. Preston St. galeriehertz.com | Free

“To get our new season off to a great beginning,” said gallerist Billy Hertz, “we are pleased to start ART with a three-person exhibition of some of our favorite artists.” Tom Pfannerstill, Emily Church and Ray Kleinhelter are mainstays in Louisville and Southern Indiana, so it is always a pleasure to see new works. As an added treat, the exhibition is showing a few of Kleinhelter’s paintings that have not been seen outside of Indiana. No reception is scheduled at this time. Visits are limited to 45 minutes and the gallery can accommodate eight to10 people with social distancing. —Jo Anne Triplett

‘A Week’s Worth of Coffee’ by Tom Pfannerstill. Acrylic on carved wood.

THROUGH MARCH 2021

‘Wim Botha: Still Life With Discontent’

21c Museum Hotel | 700 W. Main St. | 21cmuseumhotels.com/louisville | Free “The art of Wim Botha is one of perceptual moMOTION tion and perpetual momentum,” said Alice Gray Stites, chief curator and 21c Museum director. “[It propels] the viewer to close examination of his forms and materials, and of the multitude of contradictions and questions they present. To experience Botha’s art is to be led on a visceral journey, and to be marked.” 21c Museum is hosting the South African artist’s first solo show in America. With works that cover his career to date (he’s 46), viewers should expect to see art history, religion and power used “in the pursuit of questions, not answers,” Stites said.

The museum is also showing “Truth or Dare: A Reality Show.”

To see the exhibitions, reserve a time online. —Jo Anne Triplett

‘Still Life with Water’ by Wim Botha. Wood, bronze, oil paint, glass, fluorescent lights.

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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PHOTO ESSAY

BRINGING IT TO THE STREETS

CHILDREN MARCH AND PAINT TO HIGHLIGHT PROTEST

By Kathryn Harrington | leo@leoweekly.com KIDS HAVE A LOT TO SAY about gun violence in Louisville and are joining the protests.

On Saturday, a small group of children and adults gathered at what has been called Take a Knee bridge on Broadway for the March on Broadway Youth Art Showcase.

The local children and adults marched to the bridge at 3300 W. Broadway from Sanc-

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tion House Church in commemoration of the March on Washington, D.C. The children were encouraged to make posters and paint on the wall to voice their concerns on racism, police brutality and gun violence in the community. The event was hosted by Umoja Soul Youth Louisville and Leora Jackson. •

A participant in the event on Saturday painted ‘We are not treated fair’ on the Take a Knee Bridge on Broadway. | PHOTOS BY KATHRYN HARRINGTON.

Artist Victor Sweatt held up a poster he made at the March on Broadway Youth Art Showcase on Saturday.

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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PHOTO ESSAY

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Artist Cheryln Johnson worked on the Take a Knee Bridge on Broadway on Saturday.

Kimahri Campbell painted on the Take a Knee mural on Broadway on Saturday.

Homemade posters helped get out the messages.

Leora Jackson helped Braden Campbell with his message on the Take a Knee mural on Broadway.

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

PHOTO ESSAY

Participants in the march and art event held up their signs in front of the Take a Knee bridge mural.

Artist Thomas English talked to young marchers as they walked down Broadway on Saturday.

Artist Cheryln Johnson worked on the Take a Knee Bridge on Broadway on Saturday.

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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MUSIC

THE RISE OF PARKING LOT CONCERTS

WHY AREN’T WE SEEING MORE OUTDOOR STAGES IN LOUISVILLE?

By Scott Recker | leo@leoweekly.com

A socially-distanced outdoor show at The Burl in Lexington.

HEADLINERS MUSIC HALL is considering holding a few outdoor concerts in the fall, but first it has to solve many planning challenges, including legal obstacles and safety measures.

“We’re going to do this the right way, period,” co-owner Billy Hardison said.

Headliners, like many other independent venues across the country, has effectively been shut down since COVID-19 swept through the country in March. With capacity and distancing regulations, as well as few bands touring now, plus the added danger of being inside with crowds, indoor shows have become impractical, but more and more venues have been holding shows in their parking lots or other outdoor spaces —

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LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

or are looking at doing so.

It’s not nearly as easy to do as it might seem.

Headliners, for example, has several problems to solve. First, the parking lot next to the venue’s building where an outdoor concert could potentially be held is owned

by Distillery Commons, which usually leases it to Headliners for parking, so they would need to work out an agreement before a show could be held. Hardison said they are discussing a plan.

Next, because the parking lot has a different address, Headliners’ liquor license isn’t valid there, but selling its own alcohol would be pivotal to making money during a socially-distanced outdoor show. But

there may be a path forward. Because of the pandemic, bars and restaurants in the state are allowed to submit a plan to the Kentucky Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to expand their liquor license to a neighboring yard or parking lot.

Even if those problems are solved, there are so many more aspects to making an outdoor concert happen, such as finding local acts to sell enough tickets, noise issues, numerous safety precautions, building a crowd space with socially-distanced hightop tables, price points for tickets and drinks and, the most challenging — essentially building an entirely new concert venue outside.

Hardison believes that figuring it out now

might be beneficial for the future.

“We might be able to pull that off, but most importantly not just for the three-day weekend that we would do in October, but now we could show ourselves that we could do it, that we could do it well, or not, learn from our mistakes, and be prepared to do that in the spring,” he said.

THE BUILD

Scotty Haulter, who is the director of ops and production manager of Production Simple, the company that throws concerts at Headliners, Old Forester’s Paristown Hall, Iroquois Amphitheater and other venues, said that building an outdoor stage during

MUSIC

VOTE FOR US!

A socially-distanced outdoor show at The Burl in Lexington.

the pandemic is doable, but it will take a lot of advanced planning and careful decision making.

“You have to rethink all of it,” Haulter said. “Things aren’t going to be the way they used to be, because if they were we would all be open and we’d have sold out shows going. It definitely is reimagining and doing things in a different way to achieve the same goal.”

Haulter, who has more than 30 years of experience in the industry, said that the best thing that can be done is to have a unified game plan. That means having early discussions about concerns, regulations, expectations and healthy practices with the crew, the venue’s employees and the artists, and also relaying as much information as possible to the fans before they get to the venue.

Haulter has also been working with a coalition of venue representatives from around town to establish a standard of how to safely throw concerts. On top of rules from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state, some guidelines they’ve established include temperature checks for artists and their crews, a buffer zone of at least 12 feet of distance between the stage and the crowd, wiping down and sanitizing all equipment and merch before loading in and social distancing during the striking of equipment. But Haulter said that every small action has to be examined, and jobs such as building a stage, loading in and getting artists onstage will take longer than usual because of the careful and calculated new methods.

“With the pandemic, once you come up with one solution, you sort of create six other possibilities,” Haulter said. “If I know that I’m going to unload a truck all at one time, you have to start thinking about that when you’re putting a production on in a pandemic. What is the safest practice at that point? Do I want eight people standing around there in close proximity to each

other? The obvious answer is, no, I do not.

So then you have to start working backwards at that point.”

DOES IT WORK?

A few regional venues are holding outdoor concerts now, including Hi-Fi in Indianapolis, The Mellwood Tavern in Louisville and The Burl in Lexington, the latter of which has seven parking lot shows planned for September.

Mark Evans, whose company Land Line Presents books shows at The Burl, said that, so far, the outdoor concerts have run seamlessly.

“They’ve been going great,” Evans said.

“It’s been getting a positive response. Everyone’s felt really safe and had a really good time. So, that’s really all we can ask for.

Everyone’s behaved themselves really well, social distancing and adhering to the rules that we put in place.”

The Burl had an easier time than Headliners has because it owns its parking lot and has a large porch that runs the length of the venue, which was easy to convert into a stage. They sell about 50, six-person tables per show, which act as pods that keep people within their own group.

Land Line Presents also books shows at Zanzabar, which Evans hopes can soon hold outdoor shows. The space to do it is available, as the building next door to Zanzabar was demolished to build Bar Of Soap, a planned laundrocade, but that construction was delayed because of the virus, so right now it’s currently an empty lot. But they’ve run into some challenges.

“We’re running into a lot of red tape with the city — zoning issues and neighborhood issues,” Evans said. “It’s made it really hard to figure out how to do it, which is unfortunate.” •

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www.bcplumbing.net LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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FOOD & DRINK

RECOMMENDED

TINY THAI CAFE, A FAVORITE

By Robin Garr | LouisvilleHotBytes.com It’s hard to resist Thai Cafe’s crunchy, golden-brown, deep fried sweet corn cakes. | PHOTOS BY ROBIN GARR.

SINCE THE PANDEMIC, I’ve been focusing on how we can enjoy local eateries and support restaurants while still assuring ourselves maximum protection. That approach consistently leads me to places that make it easy to order and pay online and pick up my food via no-touch curbside delivery.

But it crossed my mind the other day that this method rules out a lot of the little, storefront shops that I love. Many simply don’t have the resources to set up fancy online ordering systems or spare staff to run bags out to your car.

The other day, then, craving delicious fare from some storefront Asian spot or gyros house or taqueria or something, I set about finding out how I could do this safely.

I ended up at Thai Cafe in Holiday Manor, a longtime favorite, and walked out with an outstanding meal in a bag, feeling completely safe.

Thai Cafe is a small spot in Holiday Manor Walk. It’s owned and operated by a real mom and pop: Billy Snow, who presides as host over the front of the house, taking orders and serving tables; and his Thai-born wife, Chavantee Snow, who toils in the kitchen as head chef.

This two-person operation, they proudly assert, is the oldest, family-owned Thai restaurant in the city: They opened it in 1994, and it’s been a regular stop for me because Chavantee’s home cooking makes me happy.

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Simple and perfect, steamed white rice at Thai Cafe is tender yet firm, every grain separate.

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

Indeed, the Thai Cafe website makes no mention of pandemic procedures, other than to give a number for takeout. So here’s the old-school secret to getting your questions answered: I phoned 425-4815 and got Billy Snow on the line. Do they do curbside pickup? Uh … no. Upon further inquiry, he agreed that he could bring my lunch out if I really wanted him to, but never mind. I told him I’d be happy to come in and get it.

I gave him my order, showed up less than a half-hour later and found him behind the counter, wearing his mask. My lunch bag had been placed on a safely distanced table. He took my credit card, we chatted for a moment from a 6-foot distance through our respective masks, and I blasted off, taking care not to touch my face. I truly didn’t feel uncomfortable about the encounter, particularly since no one else was in the room: Thai Cafe is not offering dining-in service during the pandemic. It’s takeout only.

Thai Cafe’s menu offers 17 lunch specials, all $9.45. We went to the dinner menu, though, for its larger portions and wider variety with more than 70 selections.

It doesn’t dive into Thai regional dishes but broadly represents the Thai culinary scene.

A half-dozen appetizers – many of them also available in vegetarian versions — are $4.50 (for Thai-style deep-fried egg rolls with pork or tofu) or $7.50 (for all the other

Thai Cafe’s green curry is loaded with crisp-tender vegetables and your choice of meat, tofu or wheatbased mock chicken in a coconut milk broth that’s spicy enough to get your attention.

FOOD & DRINK

@leoweekly

Louisville Born & Bred

Prepared Fresh to Order!

A classic Thai main-course soup, tom yum gai, features tender chicken bathed in spicy and aromatic flavors.

apps). Soups and salads — which may stand in as main courses in Thai cuisine — are also available in meat or vegetarian versions and range from $4.95 (for soups in smaller portions) to $10.95 (for salads with grilled beef or shrimp and minced pork).

Main courses are further subdivided among rice-and-noodle dishes, Thai curries, chicken, beef, pork and seafood entrées and vegetarian apps, soups, salads, entrées, rice-and-noodle dishes and curries. Whew!

Pricing for vegetarian mains spans a very narrow range: Everything is either $12.95 or $13.95!

Finally, a trio of desserts includes sweet rice with Thai custard ($6.95), deep-fried bananas ($7.95) and ice cream ($2.50).

I like to try something different every time we come to Thai Cafe, because the menu has so many interesting things and they haven’t failed me yet. But there is an exception to this rule: It’s almost impossible to resist Thai Cafe’s sweet-corn cakes ($7.50). These crunchy, slightly sweet treats are much like corn fritters with gently spicy Thai flavors. Three round cakes are deepfried golden-brown and served with a traditional condiment, chopped red onion and cucumber cloaked in a sweet, thick sauce.

A large portion of tom yum gai, a classic Thai main-course chicken soup ($7.95

for a large portion, $4.95 for small) was a filling, delicious soup that’s short of fiery but definitely spicy enough to color the fishsauce-scented broth a warm, reddish hue and make your taste buds sit up and take notice.

Lots of boneless chicken breast had been cut in thin, wide pieces, sharing the broth with abundant light-brown straw mushrooms.

Green Thai curry ($13.95) is loaded with crisp-tender vegetables and your choice of chicken, pork or beef on the carnivorous menu or tofu or wheat-based mock chicken on the vegetarian menu, served in a rich, aromatic coconut milk broth spicy enough to get your attention. In addition to the protein substitutes, the vegetarian version is loaded with a healthy, delicious mix of perfectly prepared squash, eggplant and green beans.

A large bowl of steamed white rice was just right, every grain separate.

Our lunch for two was a reasonable $31.16, plus a 20% tip. •

THAI CAFE

Voted Best Carry-Out by LEO Reader’s Choice Awards

7 Years in a Row! Middletown location

13301 Shelbyville Rd. Louisville, KY 40223

425-4815 2226 Holiday Manor Shopping Center thaicafelouisvilleky.com LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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FOOD & DRINK

FINISHING SCHOOL: WHISKEYS THAT SPEND TIME IN SECONDARY BARRELS

By Susan Reigler | leo@leoweekly.com

YOU DRINKERS who appreciate bourbon know that the whiskey acquires 100% of its color and about 70% of its flavor from its time spent aging in new, charred, oak barrels. While age statements have mostly vanished from labels, most of the bourbons (and ryes) from the legacy distilleries sleep in the oak between four and eight years, depending on the distillers’ desired flavor profiles. Of course, this aging time can be shorter or longer.

In the past decade, distillers have sought to draw even more and varied flavors from the wood through secondary aging, transferring the whiskey from its original barrel to another one with some special characteristics. These tend to fall into two camps – barrels with customized toasting, charring, and staves and barrels that once held other aging spirits. Here are some widely available examples.

CUSTOMIZED BARRELS Woodford Reserve Double Oaked (Brown-Forman)

90.4 proof 72% corn, 18% rye, 10% malted barley This was originally supposed to be a one-off, a limited-edition bourbon sold only at the Woodford Reserve Distillery in Versailles. But the people spoke (and bought), so parent company Brown-Forman made it a permanent member of the company’s whiskey portfolio.

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LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

After initial aging, the bourbon is put into a new deeply toasted and lightly charred barrel for an additional six to 12 months. Its loyal following loves the maple syrupy note in it. Often, a Double Double Oaked (aged an extra two years in the secondary barrel) can be found in the Woodford gift shop, sold in 375 mL bottles.

Old Forester 1910 Old Fine Whisky (Brown-Forman)

93 proof 72% corn, 18% rye, 10% malted barley One of the line-up in the Old Forester Whiskey Row Series, which features different expressions of the historic bourbon brand that launched in 1870. In 1910, a fire in the building that housed the bottling line forced the whiskey to be stored in deeply charred, secondary barrels. The result was a dark amber-colored, very flavorful bourbon.

Today the second barrel for 1910 simulates that condition from the fire by being charred so deeply that it would fall apart were it not held together by its iron bands. The result is a lightly smoky, notably chocolatey sip.

Maker’s Mark Private Select (Beam Suntory) Barrel proof; varies with bottling.

Usually 108 to 114 proof.

70% corn, 16% red winter wheat, 14% malted barley Private barrel selections are mostly made by liquor retailers who want to offer something unique to their customers and whiskey appreciation groups for their members. A single barrel will be chosen from a tasting

FOOD & DRINK

of several selected by the distillery and bottled. The Maker’s program is decidedly different, offering the standard bourbon, at barrel proof, but finished with a combination of 10 staves selected from five differently heated and toasted styles that are lowered into a barrel strung on a steel ring like a giant set of wooden keys. The secondary aging takes place in the specially built Cellar on the Maker’s Mark Distillery grounds, which was carved into the rock of a hillside.

The temperature is kept at a constant 50 degrees Fahrenheit so the extra few weeks of aging only draws flavor from the newly introduced staves, not the walls of the barrel.

Flavor profiles, as you would expect, are highly varied, though the sweet caramel base for which Maker’s Mark is known, is ever-present.

Buzzard’s Roost Rye (Buzzard’s Roost Sippin’ Whiskeys)

105 proof Mash bill proprietary, but must be at least 51% rye.

Lots of small American whiskey brands source their barrels from big distilleries and one of the ways they make the whiskey their own is through secondary finishing. That’s the case with Buzzard’s Roost, a new brand that sources its rye whiskey from MGP Distillery in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. One of the principals in the brand is Bourbons Bistro proprietor Jason Brauner who selects barrels and works with a cooperage to develop custom toasting and charring for the second barrel, some of which have staves with interior surfaces custom carved for increased surface area absorption. The results are complex, elegant ryes with lots of warm spice. Currently, both small batch and single barrel expressions

are available. Later this fall, Buzzard’s Roost will release a toasted barrel expression bottled at barrel strength.

SECONDARILY AGED IN PREVIOUSLY USED BARRELS Angel’s Envy Bourbon and Angel’s Envy Rye (Louisville Spirits Group) 86.6 and 100 proof respectively 72% corn, 18% rye, 10% malted barley and 95% rye, 5% malted barley

Angel’s Envy was among the first (if not the very first) to finish aging its bourbon in a secondary barrel that had once been used to age other liquor. (Jefferson’s Reserve and Bardstown Bourbon Co. are among other distillers that do some of this.) Angel’s Envy uses port wine barrels. The bourbon, which has a distinctively fruity finish has been said to be a “gateway whiskey” for wine drinkers. The distillery didn’t stop with its bourbon. The rye from Angels’ Envy is aged in ex-rum barrels which tames the rye spice and imparts a distinctly sweet nose, palate and finish.

Barrell Bourbon Single Barrel (Barrell Craft Spirits)

Barrel proof bottlings Mashbills vary for each It’s hard to keep up with all the unique bottlings from Barrell Craft Spirits. They source whiskey from a variety of sources, usually in Kentucky, Indiana and Tennessee, but have also imported spirits from as far away as Poland. Sometimes releases are single barrels of bourbon deemed especially fine. Among the most intriguing releases have been those finished in a variety of secondary barrels including ones that originally held Calvados, Cognac, Tokay and other wines and spirits. Each expression is limited and will certainly appeal to adventurous whiskey lovers. •

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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GET YOUR VOTE ON! All the categories you’ve come to expect, including: Best of Local Music Best Bar and Restaurant in Each Neighborhood Best Local Retailers, from Vintage to Groceries Best Local Services, from Tattooing to Plumbing

Plus new categories for our times: Best Place to Social Distance Indoors Best Place to Social Distance Outdoors Best Retail Curbside Service Best Curbside Service Best To-go Cocktails Best Local Activist Best Livestream Local Event Best Virtual Entertainment Series Worst Part of the Pandemic Best Part of the Pandemic

Welcome to LEO Weekly’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards, where you’ve been naming your local favorites for nearly two decades. Vote for your favorite bar or taco or farmers market.

You’ve gotta pick at least 30 categories for your votes to count, and you can only vote once — so take your time and select wisely.

There can be only one Best Beer List winner, folks! So, go online to leoweekly.com to vote! Voting closes 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Sept.

13. The results will be published in our Oct. 14 issue.

Thanks for playing!

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LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

THE RULES: Please read and heed.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

You must make at least five choices under each section.

You must cast at least 30 votes for your ballot to count.

Only one ballot per person is allowed.

Name, phone number and email address are required.

VOTE ONLINE at leoweekly.com.

Voting closes 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 13

FOOD & DRINK

BEER ME!

LOU BREW SCENE GROWS DESPITE COVID-19

By Craig and Whitney Martin | leo@leoweekly.com BEER STANDS still for no virus. While we’ve been hunkered down doing our civic duty and trying to keep all of our favorite local breweries afloat via to-go sales, at least nine more local breweries have been working toward opening or expanding.

In the expansion category, Falls City Brewing Co. recently completed a multimillion dollar brewery expansion at its current location on East Liberty Street in downtown Louisville. The project increased brewhouse volume, which will allow for further innovation while also tripling full-scale brewing capacity. And, Monnik Beer Co. has purchased the “Bank Street Brewhouse” location in New Albany previously owned by New Albanian Brewing Co. As for new spots to sample suds, here is a quick update:

RECENTLY OPENED:

Fistful of Ale. From food truck staple (Fistful of Tacos), to taco storefront, and most recently (July 2020) adding a taproom and nanobrewery, Fistful of Ale adds a solid craft beer offering to the New Albany, Indiana scene. So far, Fistful of Ale has only brewed three beers of its own (a coffee stout, a passion fruit IPA and a Belgian quad), but the remaining 17 taps provide good craft options, including many from local and regional breweries. Note, no one under 21 is allowed in the taproom, so if you have your half-pints in tow, you will need to sit on the taco side. However, it’s easy to pop through the swinging door separating the two establishments to chat with the bartenders and grab your beer of choice.

IMBIBING IMMINENT:

Atrium Brewing. Before the end of the month, you could find yourself relaxing in one of the most inviting* brewery spaces in town (*disclaimer: unsubstantiated claim based on a sample size of one, but guys, this place is cool). At the corner of Logan and Oak streets in the Shelby Park neighborhood, a late 1800s building that once housed a candy shop and a dive bar (T. Eddie’s) is now home to a 10-barrel brewing system, a food truck and several indoor and outdoor spaces geared toward

Atrium Brewing Co. brewers Spencer Guy, previous head brewer at Akasha Brewing Co. known for his (sometimes whimsical) sour beers, joins prior homebrewer and Atrium co-owner Mark Rubenstein, who specializes in hazy IPAs and rich stouts. | PHOTO PROVIDED BY ATRIUM BREWING. LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

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“hanging.” “It might sound cliché, but we happen to Akasha, the head brewer position really wanted to create a space where people has been assumed by Ryan Ogan (previously from every walk of life could come hang of Braxton Brewing in Cincinnati). out, relax, and feel welcome,” said Donald Mahoney, vice president of operations and creative director for Atrium.

COMING SOMETIME SOON(-ISH): While initially we will be required to Butchertown Brewing. In addition to a adhere to COVID-19-induced table service few “day jobs” Andy Cobb (aka the “Beer and social distancing, eventually the place Mayor” on the Louisville Beers Snobs Facewill be an ideal spot to bring your crew and book page) is taking his brewing hobby to a grab a corner, or park yourself at a comspot in the Mellwood Art Center. However, munal table and make new friends. The don’t plan on making this your new daily taproom will have a beer destination, as he stage and occasional plans to only be open After staring at the one day per month to karaoke (a nod to T. Eddie’s). The back release new beers for Dryden Provision patio has several seatonsite consumption ing areas spanning or to go. Cobb loves Co. signage for between the taproom stouts and also plans over a year since and the brewhouse. to emphasize bourbon And the upstairs beers. attending Ten20’s barrel-aged deck overlooks the “Breweries all patio and will be a over the country are groundbreaking prime viewing spot taking Kentucky ceremony in June for sporting or other bourbon barrels, events once the aging great beer 2019, we are large TV display is products in them, and mounted above the excited to see that getting the credit for brewhouse. it,” said Cobb, who this ambitious The hands, hearts feels that Kentucky and souls behind breweries need to be construction Atrium are known embracing this legacy quantities to those in project in more than they are. the Louisville beer Once a few more Butchertown is scene. Spencer Guy, inspections and perprevious head brewer mits take place, Cobb moving ahead. It at Akasha Brewing will begin brewing should be brewing and expects to have Co. known for his (sometimes whimsiproduct to release in any day now and cal) sour beers, joins the October/Novemprior homebrewer are tracking for an ber time frame. and Atrium co-owner Ten20 Craft October soft open, Brewery. After starMark Rubenstein, who specializes in ing at the Dryden with to-go sales hazy IPAs and rich Provision Co. signage stouts. As a result, for over a year since to be followed by you can expect the attending Ten20’s outdoor seating. beer selection at groundbreaking cerAtrium to span from emony in June 2019, traditional and “gatewe are excited to see way” styles to first-of-its kind experimental that this ambitious construction project in releases, beer series and creative style variButchertown is moving ahead. It should be ants. Owner and president of Atrium, Princbrewing any day now and are tracking for eton Hurst, previously owned Four Pegs an October soft open, with to-go sales to be Beer Lounge, where Mahoney also most followed by outdoor seating. recently hails from. The on-premises “Brick West Sixth Nulu, Shippingport Brewand Mortar” food truck will also be creating ing Co. (to be opened in the Portland special food to pair with beer releases. neighborhood by a former Against the Atrium intends to be open 11 a.m.-11 Grain brewer) and Noble Funk Brewery p.m. seven days/week, and is planning to (to be opened in the previous Second Street have fun brunch offerings on the weekends. downtown Kroger building) are also still “in Also, in case you’re worried about what will the works.” •

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT | COMICS

YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD

COMIC BOOK REVIEWS!

‘Bad Mother’ No. 1

Writer Christa Faust and artist Mike Deodato Jr. Review by Krystal Moore, The Great Escape Louisville

AWA (Artists Writers & Artisans) is a new comic publisher owned and operated by creators. So far, these books have offered amazing stories, perfectly drawn. It leans toward supernatural and apocalyptic stories but not always. These stories aren’t the typical superhero comic book fare. Such is the story of this “Bad Mother.”

“Bad Mother” No. 1 with art by Mike Deodato Jr. and written by Christa Faust, so far, is about a perfectly un-superhero. The book opens with April, an average looking, not quite middle-aged woman, trying on jeans and coming down with that all too familiar feeling of not being perfect enough.

She leaves empty handed and goes to the grocery store to carry out another mundane chore. Her husband tells her by phone he’s leaving town on business, and she shouldn’t bother trying to reach him. Her son needs laundry done, and her daughter is out past curfew. It’s just another day in the life of an American Mom. Well, until there’s a robbery at the grocery store that ends badly and eventually pulls her family into danger.

I don’t want to spoil anything, but let’s just say I’m looking forward to issue No. 2 to see just how bad this Mom is going to have to get! •

‘Negan Lives!

Writer Robert Kirkman and artist Charlie Adlard Review by Krystal Moore, The Great Escape Louisville

ROBERT KIRKMAN and Charlie Adlard decided to do something nice for comic shops hit hard by the pandemic by putting out a story that would get customers in the door for something they couldn’t resist.

Thus, even though “Walking Dead’s” final issue No. 193 came out in July of 2019, we’ve been given another glimpse into that world. Since it’s Negan, expect some adult situations and language!

It’s hard to say where in the timeline of “Walking Dead” that this story occurs, but I had the feeling it was later in the story with fewer of the literal walking dead. Negan is at the grave of Lucille. Is it his wife or his beloved baseball bat? I won’t give away the answer, but when a girl shows up named Lucy, we begin to question if perhaps he’s dreaming? What follows is classic Negan shenanigans.

The book, nor its writer give any indication that this is an ongoing story, but it’s definitely left in a place with the possibility of more fun adventures with this character we all love to hate!

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94 Slowly, in music 95 Correct 96 Perez of ‘‘Do the Right Thing’’ 97 Nurse back to health 98 Mouth-puckering 100 Focus of ‘‘Ocean’s Eleven’’ 101 How some bonds are sold 102 Irish novelist ____ Binchy 103 Bender 106 Gradual deterioration 107 Without much thought 109 ____ hook (rock climbing technique) 110 Big step for a start-up, in brief A M S T E L

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51 Winters or Somers 52 Italian dumplings 55 Busy time at the I.R.S.: Abbr.

58 ‘‘One Mic’’ rapper 59 Non-U.S. M.L.B. team, on sports tickers 60 More scrumptious 63 Arundhati ____, winner of the 1997 Booker Prize 64 Inner: Prefix 65 What orchids may grow without 66 Lyre player of myth 67 Michelangelo’s ‘‘The Creation of ____’’ 68 Peacenik 72 What might come down to the wire?

73 Opinion 75 Sorento or Sedona 76 G.I. fare 77 Former Mideast grp.

79 It helps turn a pond green 81 Word-processing command 82 On tenterhooks, maybe 83 The ‘‘M’’ of MHz 85 Bar freebie 88 The A.P.’s Female Athlete of the Decade for the 2010s, familiarly 89 Trim 90 Trim 91 Dutch brewery 92 Car-sticker fig.

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Down 1 Meals 2 French Foreign Legion, par exemple 3 Scallywag 4 Hummer’s instrument 5 Poet Carson 6 Totes 7 Inc., in London 8 Classic Isaac Asimov collection of short stories 9 Ball of vinegared rice topped with raw fish 10 Angels’ opposites 11 Side of a diamond 12 Charge 13 Penny pinchers 14 Express displeasure with on the road 15 ‘‘Oklahoma!’’ aunt 16 Excel function that uses a calendar 17 Puerto ____ 18 Medical tube 24 Teeny 25 GPS suggestions: Abbr.

29 What a left parenthesis suggests in an emoticon 31 Resolute 32 Suffix with switch 34 Wraps up 35 Big name in music streaming 37 ‘‘Fiddlesticks!’’

38 ‘‘So much for that’’ 39 Suffix with auto41 Middle: Abbr.

42 Where Simone Biles won four golds 43 Creative class 44 Crunchy green side dish 45 Part of an agenda 46 Infamous emperor 47 Tiebreakers, briefly 48 Canceled out 49 Apple variety 50 A collar might hide it

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Across 1 Enjoy the sun 5 Completely committed 10 One to whom you tell everything 13 Hit show with the series finale ‘‘One for the Road’’ 19 Predator of the Pacific Northwest 20 ____-Grain (breakfast-bar brand) 21 Singer Carly ____ Jepsen 22 ‘‘Give me a minute’’ 23 Iditarod, for one?

26 Intertwine 27 Show stoppers?

28 German ‘‘please’’ 29 Bronze that’s not winning any awards?

30 Station 31 One driving kids around in a Subaru?

33 B-side to the Beatles’ ‘‘Ticket to Ride’’ 36 Ginger, e.g.

37 Turn down 40 Longtime home for Terry Gross 41 Boasts 43 In the same family 47 Letting out all the stops to drown out the other instruments?

52 Set on edge 53 Having the least give 54 Large in scope 55 It’s sometimes covered in velvet 56 William who wrote ‘‘Shrek!’’

57 Not on point 59 Slip of the fingers 61 Angsty genre 62 Cocaine and guns, in a Pacino movie?

67 What Consumer Reports lacks, unlike most other magazines 69 Buzz Lightyear and Woody, e.g.

70 Massive, in poetry 71 Whine connoisseurs?

74 Party symbol since 1870 76 ‘‘Is that really necessary?’’

78 Jackson known as the ‘‘Queen of Gospel’’ 80 Sidestep 81 Troops who are worried about sun protection?

84 Like this clue 85 Basketball player, in old slang 86 Brain wave chart, for short 87 Like most prime numbers 88 All right 89 New York’s iconic ____ Building

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93 Give mom’s mom the stink eye?

99 Decorative pillowcases 104 Sorry state 105 Juuls and such 106 Bug 108 Quick tennis match 109 ‘‘Twelve Days of Christmas’’ musician who invites sympathy?

111 When 13-Across aired for most of its run 112 Stick in a boat 113 Land in the so-called ‘‘Roof of the World’’ 114 Take into account?

115 Affectionate refusal 116 Fade away 117 Morning ____ 118 Where a sloth spends most of its life

G R O A N

The New York Times Magazine Crossword

PHOTO BY RACHEL ROBINSON

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SAVAGE LOVE

By Dan Savage | mail@savagelove.net @fakedansavage

FANTASY FIGURES

Q: I’ve been married for 30 years to the same man.

I have dealt with his tantrums, his screaming and his fi ts. He’s always had anger management issues.

He strangled me once a few months after our son was born and never did it again. I would have left otherwise. He’s had relationships with other women but always swore it was just online. Then, a few years back, I got into an online relationship with someone.

I never actually met this person, just as my husband claimed he’d never met the women he was talking to online. I had opened up to this person about our troubles, and I talked about my husband’s anger issues and some other private things. This person encouraged me to have an affair, but I kept putting him off. Finally, I told him I did it, I had an affair, it was great, etc. It wasn’t true, but it seemed like that’s what he wanted to hear. About 30 minutes after I told him, I got a call from my husband! This person had sent it all to him! All of our conversations, everything, every detail. My husband flipped out, but we worked it out and moved on.

Then, a few months ago, right at the start of the pandemic, I found out that my husband has been speaking to other women. I also found out that he’s been meeting other women in hotel rooms in other cities, and all this time I believed him about never meeting with anyone in person! He claims he has erectile dysfunction, but it was clear from the messages I saw that he is having sex with these other women. So he’s somehow fucking other women despite the erectile dysfunction that prevents him from fucking me?!

I’m beside myself because over 30 years we built a life together, and now I don’t know what my future is going to look like because of this. I can’t provide for myself monetarily. I still work full time, but if I lose this job or retire, Dan, I will have nothing. And we both have medical issues. I don’t want a divorce because a secure future for both of us really does hinge on us remaining together. I know for a fact that he’s still seeing these women while forbidding me from having even online conversations — to say nothing of relations — with another man. Neither of us can make it on our own. I don’t know what to do. Why wouldn’t he want an open relationship?

Divorce Invites Serious Consequences Or Real Distress A: Your husband doesn’t want an open relationship, DISCORD, because he doesn’t want you to have the same freedom he does. And while he doesn’t want to be sexual with you for reasons that have nothing to do with erectile dysfunction, he doesn’t want you seeking sexual attention—much less sexual fulfilment—in the arms or inboxes of other men. Which means your husband sees you not as a human being like him, i.e. a person with needs and feelings and agency, but more like a car he keeps in his garage and refuses to drive and won’t let anyone else take for a spin.

You’re not a car, of course, and you’re not his property. You were also faithful to him even as he cheated on you—even after he assaulted you—and you stayed in this marriage despite being deprived of sex and other forms intimacy. But even if you guys had been fucking on a daily basis for the last thirty years, DISCORD, even if your husband wasn’t an abusive asshole with anger issues, you would still have every right to indulge in sexual fantasies that don’t involve

your husband and every right to explore those fantasies on your own time. Partnered or not, monogamous or not, we are all entitled to a zone of erotic autonomy.

You say divorce isn’t a viable option for you, DISCORD, so I’m gonna recommend a different d-word: detach. Make peace with your circumstances and the best of your living situation. Don’t go searching for evidence that your husband is cheating on you — just accept that he is. Don’t feel the need to confront him about his fucking hypocrisy — just accept that he’s a huge fucking hypocrite. And then, DISCORD, just like your husband, go and do whatever and whoever you want. You don’t need his permission to seek attention elsewhere. And if being honest about the attention you get elsewhere upsets your husband — if being honest swapping dirty texts with other men makes your husband and your home life unbearable — then don’t be honest about it. Just as he made an effort to be discreet in order to hide the scale of his cheating and his hypocrisy from you, DISCORD, you can be discreet in order to avoid conflict and drama.

Get back online, DISCORD, and go make a new friend. And just because that last guy turned out to be a sadistic asshole who drew you out in order to blow up your life, that doesn’t mean the next guy you meet online is going to be a sadistic or vindictive asshole. Billions of people get online every day to chat with strangers and millions of people share explicit fantasies with strangers every day. While revenge porn is definitely a thing — and definitely a crime — it’s almost always jilted IRL lovers who lash out like the way that asshole did. If it was even remotely common for people to be exposed to their spouses the way you were exposed to yours, DISCORD, if it happened even .01% of the time, we would hear about constantly. We don’t because it isn’t.

But to be on the safe side, DISCORD, you might to keep it anonymous. Don’t share your real info with someone you only wanna swap hot fantasies with and never intend to meet in person. And when your husband is being an asshole or just generally getting on your nerves, DISCARD, you can fantasize about the statistical likelihood that you will outlive your husband by many years. Because orgasms aren’t the only sweet release.

Q: I just read your advice for CATMAN, the person who asked if there was a name for his specific and newfound fetish: He wants to marry a submissive bisexual guy and then pick up and dominate submissive women together with his guy. As I read it, I wondered is this a sexual fantasy or is it a fetish? Then I wondered what the difference is between a fantasy and a fetish. Is there one? Does it matter?

Knowingly Investigating Newly Kinky Yearnings A: What CATMAN described — what CATMAN was looking for — was a relationship. He was fantasizing about his perfect partner and wondering if he was out there somewhere. Since literally everyone does that, KINKY, I wouldn’t describe fantasizing about a perfect partner/partners as a fetish or a kink.

Vanilla or mildly kinky or wildly kinky, we all want that perfect match, i.e. a person or people whose sexual desires and/or relationship goals parallel our own. And a lucky few manage to find someone who comes really close.

People don’t just fantasize about sex, of course;

People fantasize about dream jobs, dream vacations, dream weddings. (Wedding fantasies aren’t about who you’re marrying but how you’re marrying them, e.g. a destination wedding, a traditional wedding, a nontraditional wedding, etc.). But when it comes to sex, KINKY, fantasies are best understood as scenarios or situations that incorporate important elements of a person’s sexual desires — desires that may involve kinks or fetishes or may not. Think of fantasies as sexy little movies we screen for ourselves in our heads and kinks or fetishes as optional plot points and/or props.

The natural follow-up question: What’s the difference between a kink and a fetish then? While people often use those terms interchangeably, KINKY, they mean different things. Dr. Justin Lehmiller recently unpacked the difference on Sex & Psychology (lehmiller.com): “Kink is a very broad concept that encompasses pretty much any form of sexual expression that falls outside of the mainstream. This includes the eroticization of intense sensations (such as mixing pleasure and pain), playing with power differentials, deriving pleasure from inanimate objects, role playing, and more... [whereas] fetishes involve heightened attraction to certain objects (like boots and shoes) and/or body parts beyond the genitals (like feet and armpits).”

So, all fetishes are kinks but not all kinks are fetishes. I hope that clears things up!

mail@savagelove.net Follow Dan on Twitter @FakeDanSavage savagelovecast.com

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LEGAL

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Notice herby given by M-L Auto Repair Shop, 7601 Preston Hwy, Louisville, KY 40219 502-956-4866. The Owner has 14 days to respond in writing to obtain title to the following 2015 Ford Taurus SEL Vin#1fahp2h83fg193898 Owned by Kelly Carranco-Lugio 1321 Huntington Lane, Louisville, KY 40219; leinholder Capital One Auto Finance 3268 Progress Way, Suite 2024, Wilmington, OH 45177 2008 Pontiac Grand Prix, White-Vin#2G2WP552481179032, GREGORY C. HALL, this is the intent to obtain title. For storage and repair balance. Tk2auto (Tim Hughes) 1940 Shepherdsville Rd, Louisville, Ky 40218. 502/303-6624

KY News- Paper Summons Notifications Notice Of Summons, For A CIVIL ACTION, In The UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT Of Arizona, Case No. CV-20-39-TUC-DCB. The Company and/or People Are Hereby Notified That A Lawsuit Has Been Filed Against Those Listed Below.

Beth A. Green, MetLife Nurse Consultant, Lexington KY Within 21 Days After Service Of This Summons On You, (NOT Counting The Day You Received It.) OR 60 Days If You Are The United States OR A United States Agency OR An Officer OR Employee Of The United States, Described In Fed. R. Civ. P. 12 (a)(2) Or (3), You Must Serve On The Plaintiff and/or His Attorney An Answer To The Attached Complaint OR A Motion Under Rule 12 Of The Federal Rules Of Civil Procedure. The Answer OR Motion Must Also Be Served On The Plaintiff, (By Certified and/or Registered Mail) Whose Name and Address Is: Paul Jozwiak, 404 South Cedar Avenue, Marshfield, WI 54449. You Must Contact The Plaintiff So That His Representative May Serve The Documents, OR You May Contact The Arizona District Court, 405 West Congress Street, Ste. 150, Tucson, AZ 85701-5010 To Obtain Your Copy Of The Court Summons and All Related Court Documents. This Is To Also Inform Those Listed That Another Copy Of These Court Summons and All Related Court Documents Were Accepted and Signed For By Named Employer Above and The Defendants May Obtain Their Packages From Their Named Employer.

If You Fail To Respond, Judgment By Default Will Be Entered Against You For The Relief Demanded In The Complaint. You Also Must File Your Answer Or Motion With The Court.

Dated: 5/28/2020 Signed By: Debra Lucas / CLERK OF COURT LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

33

Commonwealth of Kentucky Court of Appeals NO. 2019-CA-000593-MR MICHAEL O’CONNELL APPELLANT v. APPEAL FROM JEFFERSON CIRCUIT COURT HONORABLE OLU A. STEVENS, JUDGE ACTION NO. 18-CI-002810 CHRISTOPHER THIENEMAN APPELLEE OPINION AFFIRMING ** ** ** ** ** BEFORE: CLAYTON, CHIEF JUDGE; DIXON AND MAZE, JUDGES. CLAYTON, CHIEF JUDGE: Michael O’Connell, the Jefferson County Attorney, brings this interlocutory appeal from a Jefferson Circuit Court order denying his motion to dismiss the amended complaint of Christopher Thieneman.

Thieneman brought suit alleging defamation in connection with public remarks made about him by O’Connell. O’Connell contends he is entitled to sovereign, qualified official, and qualified governmental immunity from suit.

On May 1, 2018, the Jefferson County Law Library sponsored a celebration of Law Day with an outdoor event held at Jefferson Square Park in downtown Louisville. The event was held between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. and featured a number of guest speakers using an electronic public-address system.

The event was not televised but there were a few bystanders. O’Connell spoke on the topic of constitutional law. A truck parked nearby and visible from the park displayed a billboard stating “Vote Out Mike O’Connell, Louisville’s Sexual Predator Protector paid for by victims of the youth explorer program” with Chris Thieneman’s name listed as treasurer.

In speaking about the First Amendment, O’Connell made the following remarks about Thieneman: He was convicted by a jury of his peers, a conviction which was upheld by the courts of this county[;] therefore he’s obviously free to speak in the manner he wants, but my office, and my prosecutors, the women in my office will not be intimidated by the speech of Mr. Thieneman. He is a sexual predator, he was convicted of trying to strangle his then-girlfriend, and the women in this community should be wary and be prepared to not come in contact with him, ever. He is a danger to this community, and to the women in this community, and each one should make sure they take every precaution they can to protect themselves from this sexual predator.

There. That’s my right of free speech, and my office won’t be intimidated by this. And, between now and whenever, and as long as he wants to keep that up, I’ll call it exactly what it is, a sexual, uh excuse me, a domestic violence perpetrator, and an abuser of women, and he strangles women, and was convicted by a jury, and upheld by the appeals court. Thank you very much.

Appellant Brief at *2.

Thieneman filed a complaint against O’Connell in Jefferson Circuit Court, stating as his causes of action defamation per se and defamation. He subsequently filed an amended complaint to correct a typographical error.

O’Connell filed a motion to dismiss the amended complaint, arguing that he was entitled to sovereign immunity and qualified immunity, that his speech was protected by the First Amendment, that Thieneman failed to state a claim for defamation as he failed to show actual malice, and that Thieneman failed to state a claim for damages. Discovery was stayed pending the circuit court’s ruling on the motion to dismiss. O’Connell subsequently filed a supplemental memorandum of law concerning qualified immunity. Thieneman filed a response to the motion to dismiss and O’Connell filed a reply. The circuit court entered an order denying the motion to dismiss after finding the amended complaint was sufficient to state a cause of action against O’Connell. This interlocutory appeal followed.

This interlocutory appeal is permissible because “an order denying a substantial claim of absolute immunity is immediately appealable even in the absence of a final judgment.” Breathitt County Bd. of Educ. v. Prater, 292 S.W.3d 883, 887 (Ky. 2009). The cloak of immunity entitles its possessor to be free “from the burdens of defending the action, not merely just an immunity from liability.”

Rowan County v. Sloas, 201 S.W.3d 469, 474 (Ky. 2006) (citations omitted).

O’Connell argues that he is entitled to sovereign immunity because he was sued solely in his official capacity as the Jefferson County Attorney.

Thieneman’s complaint designated the defendant as “Michael O’Connell Jefferson County Attorney.” The complaint did not refer to O’Connell in his individual capacity.

If strictly construed, the complaint’s designation of O’Connell solely in his official capacity would lead to Thieneman’s claims being barred because “[t]he absolute immunity from suit afforded to the state also extends to public officials sued in their representative (official) capacities, when the state is the real party against which relief in such cases is sought.” Yanero v. Davis, 65 S.W.3d 510, 518 (Ky. 2001) (citations omitted). “Official immunity can be absolute, as when an officer or employee of the state is sued in his/her representative capacity,

34

LEOWEEKLY.COM //SEPTEMBER 2, 2020

in which event his/her actions are included under the umbrella of sovereign immunity[.]” Id. at 521. Prosecutors are also afforded absolute immunity “with respect to the initiation and pursuit of prosecutions[.]” Id. at 518 (citations omitted); see also Jefferson County Commonwealth Attorney’s Office v. Kaplan, 65 S.W.3d 916, 920 (Ky. 2001), as modified on denial of reh’g (Feb. 21, 2002).

Yet the allegations of Thieneman’s complaint are directed against O’Connell as an individual, not against the state as the real party in interest, nor against O’Connell in regard to his conduct of a prosecution. O’Connell nonetheless argues that the failure of the complaint to name him in his individual capacity is fatal to Thieneman’s case. In Edmonson County v. French, a panel of this Court addressed a similar situation in which a slip and fall complaint against the members of a fiscal court and judge executive failed to specify they were also being named in their individual capacities. 394 S.W.3d 410 (Ky. App. 2013).

When the defendants invoked the doctrine of sovereign immunity, the plaintiff urged the Court to liberally construe her complaint to encompass claims against them in their individual capacities.

In resolving the issue, the Edmonson Court considered two different approaches. First, it reviewed Calvert Investments, Inc. v. Louisville & Jefferson County Metropolitan Sewer Dist., 805 S.W.2d 133 (Ky. 1991), in which the Kentucky Supreme Court held that a claim against a state actor in his or her individual capacity must be made with specificity: [T]he question is whether the Complaint does in fact state a basis for personal liability and seek damages in an individual capacity. We are persuaded by the failure to specify individual capacity in the heading, the lack of specificity in the body, and the failure to seek judgment against such individuals in the concluding demand, that the Complaint fails to state a separate cause of action for personal liability against any particular individual.

Edmonson, 394 S.W.3d at 415 (quoting Calvert Investments, 805 S.W.2d at 139).

The Edmonson Court also noted the unpublished case of Eblen v.

Hargis, No. 2002-CA-001478-MR, 2003 WL 21512531 (Ky. App. Jul. 3, 2003), an opinion cited by O’Connell, in which Eblen filed suit against the property valuation administrator (PVA) for raising the taxable value of his home.

Relying on the holding in Calvert Investments, this Court upheld the dismissal of Eblen’s claim for failure to state a claim against a state actor in his individual capacity, noting that the complaint only contained allegations that Hargis acted improperly in his employment as PVA. Edmonson, 394 S.W.3d at 414-15.

Second, Edmonson considered McCollum v. Garrett, 880 S.W.2d 530 (Ky. 1994), in which the Supreme Court adopted a broader approach. In McCollum, the plaintiff alleged malicious prosecution against a county attorney but did not expressly state whether the claim was against him in his individual or official capacity. Id. at 532. The opinion analyzed the issue as follows: In our view, this issue should be resolved by a commonsense reading of the complaint and application of the Rules of Civil Procedure. While disclosure of McCollum’s official position in the caption and in paragraph 2 creates a measure of uncertainty, the complaint otherwise states a straightforward claim against McCollum based upon his individual actions.

Nowhere is there any allegation that Henderson County or its fiscal court is liable for damages. The relevant allegations of misconduct are directed at McCollum and Cottingham. CR[1] 8.06 requires that “All pleadings shall be so construed as to do substantial justice.” This rule, sometimes called a “liberal construction” rule, requires that a pleading be judged according to its substance rather than its label or form. To construe this pleading as a claim against the defendants in their official capacity would result in the claim being barred. To construe it as an individual capacity claim permits the litigation to proceed toward the merits, a goal we have expressly embraced in other contexts. Ready v. Jamison, Ky., 705 S.W.2d 479 (1986), Crossley v. Anheuser-Busch, Inc., Ky., 747 S.W.2d 600 (1988).

Id. at 533 (footnote omitted).

In deciding whether to adopt the Calvert or the McCollum approach, the Edmonson Court noted that the plaintiff, who was injured when she slipped and fell on some ice outside the courthouse, specifically alleged in her complaint that the fiscal court was responsible for maintaining and keeping safe the premises of the courthouse, a public building, and that the defendants failed to keep the premises in a reasonably safe condition. The plaintiff “did not single out any particular member of the fiscal court or the judge executive regarding that person’s action or lack of action, as was the case in McCollum. And she certainly alleged that the county and the fiscal court were liable.” Edmonson, 394 S.W.3d at 416.

The Court consequently rejected the “liberal construction” rule of McCollum and construed the complaint strictly according to Calvert. Id. 1 Kentucky Rules of Civil Procedure.

By contrast, as we have noted, the allegations of misconduct in Thieneman’s

complaint state a straightforward claim against O’Connell based upon his individual actions and do not allege that the County Attorney’s Office is in any way liable for damages. This situation bears greater similarity to McCollum and accordingly Thieneman’s complaint shall be construed as being brought against O’Connell in an individual, as well as a representative, capacity. “[W]hen sued in their individual capacities, public officers and employees enjoy only qualified official immunity, which affords protection from damages liability for good faith judgment calls made in a legally uncertain environment.”

Yanero, 65 S.W.3d at 522 (citation omitted). “Qualified official immunity applies to the negligent performance by a public officer or employee of (1) discretionary acts or functions, i.e., those involving the exercise of discretion and judgment, or personal deliberation, decision, and judgment, . . . ; (2) in good faith; and (3) within the scope of the employee’s authority.” Id. (citations omitted). Conversely, “[a] government official is not afforded immunity from tort liability for the negligent performance of a ministerial act.” Patton v. Bickford, 529 S.W.3d 717, 724 (Ky. 2016), as modified on denial of reh’g (Aug. 24, 2017).

Discretionary acts are “those involving the exercise of discretion and judgment, or personal deliberation, decision, and judgment.” Id. (citation omitted).

“Discretion in the manner of the performance of an act arises when the act may be performed in one or two or more ways, either of which would be lawful, and where it is left to the will or judgment of the performer to determine in which way it shall be performed.” Haney v. Monsky, 311 S.W.3d 235, 240 (Ky. 2010), as corrected (May 7, 2010) (citing Upchurch v. Clinton County, 330 S.W.2d 428, 430 (Ky. 1959)). “On the other hand, ministerial acts or functions—for which there are no immunity—are those that require ‘only obedience to the orders of others, or when the officer’s duty is absolute, certain, and imperative, involving merely execution of a specific act arising from fixed and designated facts.’” Id. (quoting Yanero, 65 S.W.3d at 522).

Thieneman does not dispute that O’Connell’s comments at the Law Day event were made within his discretionary, rather than ministerial, capacity, as his decision to speak and the content of his remarks were determined by his own will and judgment. Under these circumstances, “[o]nce the officer or employee has shown prima facie that the act was performed within the scope of his/her discretionary authority, the burden shifts to the plaintiff to establish by direct or circumstantial evidence that the discretionary act was not performed in good faith.” Yanero, 65 S.W.3d at 523 (citation omitted). “[Q]ualified official immunity yields to proof that a defendant’s actions were malicious.” Martin v.

O’Daniel, 507 S.W.3d 1, 6 (Ky. 2016), as corrected (Sept. 22, 2016) (emphasis original).

The elements of a defamation claim are as follows: “(a) a false and defamatory statement concerning another; (b) an unprivileged publication to a third party; (c) fault amounting at least to negligence on the part of the publisher; and (d) either actionability of the statement irrespective of special harm or the existence of special harm caused by the publication.” Toler v. Süd-Chemie, Inc., 458 S.W.3d 276, 282 (Ky. 2014), as corrected (Apr. 7, 2015) (citation and footnote omitted).

Thus, in addition to proving each of these elements, O’Connell’s qualified official immunity imposes upon Thieneman the additional burden of showing that the Law Day remarks were made, not negligently, but maliciously, i.e., in bad faith. “[I]n the context of qualified official immunity, ‘bad faith’ can be predicated on a violation of a constitutional, statutory, or other clearly established right which a person in the public employee’s position presumptively would have known was afforded to a person in the plaintiff’s position, i.e., objective unreasonableness; or if the officer or employee willfully or maliciously intended to harm the plaintiff or acted with a corrupt motive.” Yanero, 65 S.W.3d at 523 (citation omitted).

Thieneman argues that a claim for defamation per se creates a conclusive presumption of both malice and damages, in reliance on Stringer v.

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., 151 S.W.3d 781, 794-95 (Ky. 2004), overruled by Toler, 458 S.W.3d 276. But “[t]o the extent that Stringer stands for a perpetuation of allowing the mere allegation of falsity to permit an inference of malice, it is overruled. . . . [A]ny statement in Stringer to the contrary notwithstanding, both malice and falsity must be shown for a plaintiff to overcome the qualified privilege.” Toler, 458 S.W.3d at 287 (emphasis original).

Thieneman argues that malicious prosecution does not sound in negligence and consequently the qualified official privilege is unavailable to O’Connell.

But Thieneman’s complaint does not allege malicious prosecution, which is a significantly different claim from defamation. Malice is one of the elements that must be proven as part of a malicious prosecution claim and therefore in that context the “defense of qualified official immunity has little meaning and no effect.” Martin, 507 S.W.3d at 6. By contrast, O’Connell is protected by qualified official immunity if his remarks, if defamatory, were made without malice and in good faith.

Thieneman also alleges that O’Connell has improperly prevented discovery by filing this interlocutory appeal. The record shows that Thieneman served discovery requests on O’Connell, who filed a motion to stay discovery pending the circuit court’s ruling on the motion to dismiss. Thieneman did not respond to the motion to stay discovery and did not appear at the motion hour on October 8, 2018. At that motion hour, the circuit court ruled it would hold the case in abeyance for a week to allow Thieneman to respond. At the following motion

hour, on October 15, 2018, Thieneman still had not responded or appeared. The circuit court accordingly granted the motion to stay discovery. Thieneman was provided with ample opportunity to raise his argument regarding discovery and it will not be addressed here for the first time on appeal.

The concurring opinion makes a public policy argument for extending absolute prosecutorial immunity to O’Connell for his remarks, while acknowledging that this defense was not invoked by O’Connell and is not supported by our case law. In McCollum, the Kentucky Supreme Court discussed the scope of prosecutorial immunity in the context of Buckley v. Fitzsimmons, 509 U.S. 259, 113 S. Ct. 2606, 125 L. Ed. 2d 209 (1993), observing that Buckley “is clear that absolute immunity does not follow a prosecutor in all of his actions.”

McCollum, 880 S.W.2d at 534.

In Buckley, the appellant, a criminal defendant, claimed that defamatory remarks made about him at a press conference by the prosecutor, Fitzsimmons, deprived him of the right to a fair trial by inflaming the public against him and causing the jury to deadlock rather than acquit him. As the concurrence has rightly noted, the claims in Buckley were made pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 2 §1983 and, consequently, in order to claim prosecutorial immunity, Fitzsimmons would have had to show it was well-established prior to the 2 United States Code. enactment of §1983 in 1871. The concurring opinion also notes that whereas the United States Supreme Court may not establish immunities from §1983 actions on the basis of public policy, state courts are not subject to the same constraints in addressing state law claims.

Presumably, the McCollum Court was fully aware of this distinction yet nonetheless declined to extend prosecutorial immunity on public policy grounds.

Instead, the McCollum Court approved the functional approach of Buckley in assessing the availability of prosecutorial immunity as entirely congruent with Dugger v. Off 2nd, Inc., 612 S.W.2d 756 (Ky. App. 1980), which held “that so long as a prosecutor acts within the scope of the duties imposed by law, quasi-judicial immunity is available, but otherwise it is not.” McCollum, 880 S.W.2d at 534 (footnote omitted). In assessing the availability of immunity to Fitzsimmons, the Buckley Court stated: Fitzsimmons does not suggest that in 1871 there existed a common-law immunity for a prosecutor’s, or attorney’s, out-ofcourt statement to the press. . . . Indeed, while prosecutors, like all attorneys, were entitled to absolute immunity from defamation liability for statements made during the course of judicial proceedings and relevant to them, . . . most statements made out of court received only good-faith immunity. The common-law rule was that [t]he speech of a counsel is privileged by the occasion on which it is spoken . . . .

Comments to the media have no functional tie to the judicial process just because they are made by a prosecutor. At the press conference, Fitzsimmons did not act in his role as advocate for the State[.] The conduct of a press conference does not involve the initiation of a prosecution, the presentation of the state’s case in court, or actions preparatory for these functions. Statements to the press may be an integral part of a prosecutor’s job, . . . and they may serve a vital public function. But in these respects a prosecutor is in no different position than other executive officials who deal with the press, and, . . . qualified immunity is the norm for them.

Buckley, 509 U.S. at 277-78, 113 S. Ct. at 2617-18 (citations and internal quotation marks omitted).

The Buckley Court reiterated that “ʻ[t]he presumption is that qualified rather than absolute immunity is sufficient to protect government officials in the exercise of their duties. . . .’ Even if policy considerations allowed us to carve out new absolute immunities to liability for constitutional wrongs under § 1983, we see little reason to suppose that qualified immunity . . . would fail to provide sufficient protection in the present context.” Id., 509 U.S. at 278, 113 S. Ct. at 2618 (citations and footnote omitted).

O’Connell, like other officials, is entitled only to the protections of qualified official immunity for his public statements which, arguably, are even less related to his function as County Attorney than the comments made by Fitzsimmons.

Because O’Connell is not entitled to absolute immunity from suit, the Jefferson Circuit Court’s order denying the motion to dismiss is affirmed. The case is remanded for further proceedings to determine whether O’Connell is entitled to qualified official immunity, which requires a finding, established by direct or circumstantial evidence, Yanero, 65 S.W.3d at 523, that he acted without malice in making the allegedly defamatory statements about Thieneman.

The Jefferson Circuit Court’s order denying the motion to dismiss is affirmed and the case is remanded for further proceedings in accordance with this opinion.

DIXON, JUDGE, CONCURS IN RESULT ONLY. MAZE, JUDGE, CONCURS AND FILES SEPARATE OPINION. MAZE, JUDGE, CONCURRING: I agree with the reasoning and result of the majority opinion. However, I write separately to express my opinion that Ken-

tucky should extend absolute prosecutorial immunity to the claims at issue in this case. Extending such immunity would allow prosecutors to keep the public informed about pending and completed prosecutions without fear of defending actions for defamation.

As an initial matter, I reluctantly agree with the majority that Thieneman’s complaint properly states a claim against O’Connell in both his individual and his official capacities. When sued in his representative capacity, O’Connell is entitled to the same immunity as the Office of the County Attorney itself would be. Yanero, 65 S.W.3d at 521. The County Attorney, as an agency of a political subdivision of the state, is entitled to governmental immunity from tort liability when performing governmental functions. Id. at 519. But when sued in his individual capacity, O’Connell’s immunity is only qualified. Id. at 522.

The first question in this case, as addressed by the majority opinion, is whether Thieneman’s complaint states a claim against O’Connell in his official or in his individual capacity. Based on the analysis in McCollum, supra, and Edmonson, supra, I agree that the complaint states a basis for personal liability and seeks damages in an individual capacity. Thieneman’s complaint is very ambiguous concerning the claims asserted against O’Connell individually. The complaint only names O’Connell in his capacity as Jefferson County Attorney regarding actions taken performing the duties connected with that office.

Thieneman also had the opportunity to amend his complaint to state a claim against O’Connell specifically in his individual capacity. Thieneman failed to do so.

Nevertheless, the complaint is substantively indistinguishable from the claims brought against the County Attorney in McCollum. As in that case, Thieneman’s complaint only references O’Connell and seeks damages only against him. CR 8.06 requires this Court to construe the complaint liberally according to its substance rather than its label or form. To construe this pleading as a claim against O’Connell solely in his official capacity would result in the claim being barred. While the rule does not require us to re-write the pleading, based on McCollum I must agree that the complaint sufficiently states claims against O’Connell in his individual capacity.

Since this is an interlocutory appeal, the only questions properly presented involve the denial of a claim of absolute immunity. Prater, 292 S.W.3d at 886.

At this juncture, Thieneman’s allegations of malice are sufficient to preclude a finding that O’Connell is entitled to qualified immunity in his individual capacity. Martin, 507 S.W.3d at 5. Likewise, any arguments concerning privilege or whether his statements are defamatory are beyond the scope of this interlocutory appeal. This is a battle which will have to be fought at a later time.

However, this is not the end of our inquiry. Although O’Connell’s official immunity is only qualified, absolute immunity is also afforded to certain governmental actors. Yanero, 65 S.W.3d at 518. The immunity does not depend upon whether the official is sued in his or her representative or individual capacity, but upon the nature of the duties performed. Among other duties, the County Attorney is responsible for the prosecution of all offenses subject to the jurisdiction of the District Court. Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS) 15.725(2).

When acting in this role, the County Attorney is entitled to absolute prosecutorial immunity.

Imbler v. Pachtman, 424 U.S. 409, 422-23, 96 S. Ct. 984, 991, 47 L. Ed. 2d 128 (1976).

On the other hand, absolute immunity does not apply when the County Attorney is functioning as an administrator or an investigator. McCollum, 880 S.W.2d at 534 (citing Buckley v. Fitzsimmons, 509 U.S. 259, 113 S. Ct. 2606, 125 L. Ed. 2d 209 (1993)). Likewise, the County Attorney is not entitled to absolute immunity when he provides legal advice to or represents the interests of a consolidated local government. KRS 69.210. In those circumstances, the prosecutor’s immunity is limited to qualified immunity.

In Buckley v. Fitzsimmons, the United States Supreme Court held that a prosecutor’s comments to the media have no functional tie to the judicial process.

509 U.S. at 277, 113 S. Ct. at 2618. While statements to the press may be an integral part of a prosecutor’s job, such functions are no different than other administrative functions performed by other executive officials. Consequently, the prosecutor is limited to qualified immunity for such statements. Id., 509 U.S. at 278, 113 S. Ct. at 2618.

However, the claims in Buckley were brought under 42 U.S.C. §1983.

Consequently, any immunities were limited to those in existence in 1871, when the Civil Rights Act was enacted. At common law, there was no recognized immunity for a prosecutor’s or an attorney’s out-of-court statements to the press. Id., 509 U.S. at 277, 113 S. Ct. at 2617. The Supreme Court determined that it did not “have a license to establish immunities from § 1983 actions in the interests of what we judge to be sound public policy.” Id., 509 U.S. at 278, 113 S. Ct. at 2618 (citation omitted). On the other hand, state courts, ruling on state-law claims such as defamation, are not subject to this limitation.

Most notably, Indiana has adopted a rule providing that a prosecutor’s statements to the press regarding a pending case, if made within the scope of his authority, are absolutely immune. Foster v. Pearcy, 270 Ind. 533, 538, 387 N.E.2d 446, 449 (1979). See also Sims v. Barnes, 689 N.E.2d 734, 737 (Ind. Ct. App. 1997). A district of the Illinois Appellate Court adopted this rule in Bianchi v.

McQueen, 58 N.E.3d 680, 701-02 (Ill. App. Ct. 2016). Connecticut has applied this rule to public statements made by the state Attorney General. Hultman v.

Blumenthal, 67 Conn. App. 613, 623, 787 A.2d 666, 674 (2002). Similarly,

Vermont, Pennsylvania, and Michigan extend their statutory absolute immunity to district attorneys’ public statements about a prosecution. See O’Connor v.

Donovan, 191 Vt. 412, 424, 48 A.3d 584, 592 (2012), Pickering v. Sacavage, 164 Pa. Cmwlth. 117, 126, 642 A.2d 555, 559 (1994), and Bischoff v. Calhoun Cty. Prosecutor, 173 Mich. App. 802, 806, 434 N.W.2d 249, 251 (1988).

“The rationale for absolute immunity for the performance of legislative, judicial and prosecutorial functions is not to protect those individuals from liability for their own unjustifiable conduct, but to protect their offices against the deterrent effect of a threat of suit alleging improper motives where there has been no more than a mistake or a disagreement on the part of the complaining party with the decision made.” Yanero, 65 S.W.3d at 518 (citation omitted). I believe that this reasoning is equally applicable to the case at hand. Prosecutors have a duty to inform the public as to their investigative, administrative, and prosecutorial activities. Foster, 387 N.E.2d at 449. Statements to the media and to the public at large further this significant role.

To be clear, I do not believe that every public statement by a prosecutor is subject to absolute immunity. However, prosecutors are frequently called upon to speak on matters relating to pending or completed prosecutions.

During the pendency of a prosecution or trial, a court may reasonably restrict the parties from making public statements which may prejudice the outcome.

But in the absence of such a restriction or once the prosecution is completed, a prosecutor should be entitled to make public statements concerning the facts of the prosecution and conviction. Such statements are reasonably attendant to the prosecutorial function. To hold otherwise, in my opinion, would have a devastating and chilling effect on public officials.

In this case, Thieneman’s complaint alleges that O’Connell defamed him by referencing his prior prosecution and conviction for second-degree wanton endangerment and by stating that he was a danger to the community as a result.

O’Connell spoke about his office’s prior prosecution of Thieneman for assault and conviction for second-degree wanton endangerment. When speaking about this prosecution, O’Connell referred to the actions and position of the County Attorney’s Office. He specifically referred to “my office, and my prosecutors, [and] the women in my office . . . .”

I concede that O’Connell conflated the nature of Thieneman’s offenses with the allegations posted on the billboard – he twice referred to Thieneman as a “sexual predator.” This was clearly an inaccurate statement of the facts surrounding the conviction. But O’Connell specifically noted the facts supporting the conviction and he corrected his prior mischaracterization of Thieneman’s actions near the close of his remarks. Although I believe that O’Connell’s remarks were ill-considered, I would nonetheless hold that they were subject to absolute prosecutorial immunity.

In context, I would find that O’Connell was addressing the official position of his office regarding a completed prosecution. While that prosecution was completed, the County Attorney is entitled to publicly address the fact of a conviction. His office prosecuted Thieneman for attempting to choke his thengirlfriend. That prosecution resulted in a conviction which was upheld on appeal.

Making public statements about the result of the County Attorney’s prosecution of particular individuals is reasonably within the scope of O’Connell’s prosecutorial role. It also furthers the purpose of affording immunity to such actions – protecting a prosecutor from liability for engaging in the necessary functions of the prosecutorial role. Furthermore, O’Connell was entitled to express his opinion about Thieneman to the extent that it was based on the disclosed and accurate facts surrounding the prosecution and conviction. Yancey v. Hamilton, 786 S.W.2d 854, 857 (Ky. 1989).

Nevertheless, I must recognize that Kentucky has not adopted absolute immunity for prosecutors to this degree. While I believe that there are compelling public policy reasons to do so, it is not the role of this Court to adopt such a rule for the first time. I must also recognize that O’Connell has not asked this Court to do so. Thus, while I believe that the claims against O’Connell should be barred by absolute immunity, I must agree with the majority that O’Connell only has qualified immunity from defamation claims brought against him in his individual capacity. Therefore, I concur in the majority’s decision to affirm the denial of his motion to dismiss.

BRIEFS FOR APPELLANT: Michael J. O’Connell Kristie B. Walker Louisville, Kentucky ORAL ARGUMENT FOR APPELLANT: Kristie B. Walker Louisville, Kentucky

BRIEF FOR APPELLEE: Thomas A. McAdam, III Louisville, Kentucky ORAL ARGUMENT FOR APPELLEE: Mary E. Eade Louisville, Kentucky

YOU WILL NOT SEE THIS RULING ON QUALIFIED IMMUNITY IN YOUR CJ Christopher Thieneman 502-643-6919 chtieneman@me.com

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