Louisville police sex-abuse case unsealed by judge
Correction: An earlier version of this story had an incorrect date for a hearing on whether the plaintiff should be named.
Jefferson Circuit Judge Judith McDonald-Burkman unsealed a lawsuit Monday alleging two Louisville police officers sexually abused a former Explorer Scout and that the police department concealed it.
She also set a May 3 hearing for arguments on whether the plaintiff, a 22-year-old man identified only as N.C., should be named.
Attorney David Yates, who is representing N.C., said in a motion seeking a protective order that it is important that sex-abuse victims aren't shamed. But an attorney for one of the officers argues that it is unfair for the defendants to be named but not the plaintiff.
The Courier-Journal had motioned to have the case unsealed, citing the public's right to know about the accusations against police. Although it obtained a copy of the lawsuit and reported it in March, the news organization wanted the suit to be open to have access to additional filings made in the case.
It did not seek to unseal the case for the purpose of publishing any plaintiffs' names, Executive Editor Joel Christopher said. The Courier-Journal does not typically name victims of sex abuse in criminal cases, he added.
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In the suit, N.C. alleges he was raped and sexually assaulted by Officer Brandon Wood and former Officer Kenneth Betts when he was between 17 and 19 years old and a participant in the police department's Youth Explorer program. The age of consent in Kentucky is normally 16 but rises to 18 when the alleged perpetrators are in a position of trust.
Wood's attorney has said his client maintains his innocence, while Betts' attorneys have declined to comment. Other defendants named in the suit include the city; police department; the Boy Scouts of America, a partner in the program; and Maj. Curtis Flaherty, who ran the Explorer program.
Under state law, cases involving sex abuse from more than five years ago are closed, but the statute does not specify whether it should remain sealed.
McDonald-Burkman said at a March 20 hearing that she had to decide whether that law was constitutional before opening the case. She said in Monday’s order, however, that “upon further reflection,” the court found that ruling was unnecessary to open the case.
What remains at issue is whether the plaintiff's name should remain confidential.
"As this court is very well aware, this case deals with allegations that will undoubtedly involve deep personal, private and embarrassing information related to the parties involved, especially since it involved allegations of sexual abuse against minors," he said.
But Wood's attorney, Kenneth Bohnert, argued in a motion that "even if legally permissible" it is "unfair and practically untenable" for the plaintiff's name and that of any other witnesses to remain anonymous. "It seems what the unnamed plaintiff ... really wants is a 'one-way' sealing of the court file," Bohnert said.
Yates, who is also Metro Council president, told the Courier-Journal that he has interviewed three other former Explorers who allege abuse.
After the March 20 hearing, Jefferson County Attorney Mike O'Connell also called it "unfair" that the plaintiff isn't named in the suit while the accused police officers are. He later backtracked, saying that neither he nor Mayor Greg Fischer wanted the plaintiff named.
O'Connell was representing the city, which called for the case be unsealed. WDRB Media also filed to unseal the lawsuit, saying it was adopting the Courier-Journal's arguments that the public has a right to know.
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Phillip M. Bailey can be reached at 502-582-4475 or pbailey@courier-journal.com.