LMPD :: Louisville Metro Police Department
IMAGE

LMPD officer charged with official misconduct after ordering woman to strip

IMAGE
PHOTO

A Louisville Metro Police officer is charged with official misconduct after he ordered a woman to strip for no reason, according to court documents.

The allegations stem from an alleged incident that took place on Oct. 14, 2012.

According to a criminal citation, 41-year-old Joe Burden was on a run when he detained a witness and told her there was a warrant for her arrest.

There was no such warrant, according to the complaint.

When the other officers left the scene, Burden allegedly told the witness to pull her pants down, acting "as if he had the authority to request this."

The witness complied, according to the complaint.

Burden allegedly told the witness other officers wanted her to go to jail, but he released her. When the woman got home, she called her attorney and told him what happened.

Immediately after the incident, authorities say Burden called the woman on her cell phone and asked to see her, but she declined the invitation, telling him she was already in a relationship. She then called the LMPD Public Integrity Unit and filed a complaint, and an investigation was opened.

On Dec. 11, 2012, the woman participated in a undercover investigation of Burden. She agreed to meet with him in the parking lot of the Walmart near Greenbelt Hwy. and Terry Rd. to discuss fines she owed on a speeding ticket. Burden then allegedly told her to follow him to nearby Riverside Garden Park. While there, authorities say Burden asked her to get out of her car and asked if he could grope her.

He then allegedly placed both hands under her shirt. That's when personnel from the LMPD Public Integrity Unit approached him.

Burden appeared before a judge at 9 a.m. on May 22 to answer for a charge of first-degree official misconduct. While there, he was served a criminal summons. He is currently on home incarceration, according to court sources.