Louisville police say use-of-force complaints are down by half in the past few years, and credit the drop to improved training.
But others think the decline -- from 38 formal complaints in 2001 to 19 last year -- doesn't necessarily point to law enforcement improvements.
Some officers say the lower number of complaints reflects the fear officers have of being suspended or fired. And some community activists argue that the lower number shows that residents have almost given up filing complaints because they do not believe any action will be taken.
According to police records obtained through the state Open Records Act, only six of 144 use-of-force complaints filed since 1999 have resulted in officers being punished. Of those complaints, five resulted in suspensions, reprimands or additional training.
The Courier-Journal obtained the information and filed the report in today's editions.