LMPD sergeant accuses FOP of wrongfully closing investigation

An LMPD officer who accused her superiors of sexual harassment has filed a motion to intervene in an FOP lawsuit. The lawsuit seeks to end an investigation into the alleged harassment of Sergeant Lauren Carby at an “adult pool party” in 2020. Carby sued the Louisville Metro Police Department last month, claiming she was harassed at the party by the hosts, Maj. Shannon Lauder and her husband, Lt. Jeff Lauder. The Fraternal Order of Police later filed suit to stop the internal investigation into the matter, arguing that Carby’s confidentiality during a peer support meeting was violated. In her motion, however, Carby says she reported the breach of her confidentiality; she wants her right to confidentiality lifted and the investigation to continue. She claims the FOP did not act in her best interests when it blocked the investigation. “Interestingly, Lt. Jeff Lauder and Major Shannon Lauder, the perpetrators who harassed Lauren Carby, were the sole beneficiaries of the FOP’s fight to shut down the PSU investigation and conceal the documents and information obtained in the process,” the lawsuit states. Carby was the third woman to come forward with a sexual harassment allegation within the department last month. The first was the woman Carby accuses, Shannon Lauder. Shannon Lauder accused a member of the command staff of sexually harassing her. That allegation sparked an investigation into then-Chief Jackie Gwinn-Villaroel, who eventually left the department.