POLICE STEERING COMMITTEE
December 9, 2025 6:00 PM
Location: St. Matthews City Hall (2nd Floor Conference Room)
3940 Grandview Ave. Minutes
1. Called the Meeting to Order: Chief Barry Wilkerson (Chair) called the meeting to order at 6:04 PM.
2. Roll Call – Chief Barry S. Wilkerson, Major Leon E. Jones, Jr, Major Anthony J. Cobaugh, Mayor Richard J. Tonini, Councilmember Benard F. Bowling, Jr., Councilmember Timothy Holland
Also in attendance: Judi Kassebaum, City Clerk
3. Approval of Minutes (11/13/2025)
a. Councilmember Bowling made a motion to accept the minutes.
b. Second: Councilman Holland
c. Vote: Motion carried unanimously
4. New Business
a. Personnel– Kenneth Corman is planning to start January 4, 2026, he has one more medical test to complete before he can start. An officer will be off work due to an off-work injury requiring surgery. The officer that already had surgery had a complication and will be off until at least mid-January.
b. Executive Session [KRS 61.878(1)(m)] Exempt Records Discussion
Chief Wilkerson made a motion to enter into Executive Session and was seconded by Maj. Cobaugh. Executive session began at 6:09. Personnel issues were discussed. Mayor Tonini made a motion to return to open session and was seconded by Councilmember Holland. The motion carried and returned to open session at 6:29 PM.
c. Crime – There have been 85-90 incidents of cars being broken into since October. Ms. Morris did an analysis using Predictive AI to determine when these were most likely to happen. There was decrease in incidents when extra details were working. Late watch reported breaking up 10-15 incidents. Late watch also caught two people in stolen cars. Two more stolen cars were recovered with LMPD making the arrests.
Shoplifting is increasing as are SMPD holiday details.
d. Medical Director –Tim Price, MD, FAEMS, FAAEM is considering being St. Matthew’s medical director. He is associated with U of L Hospital and is also the medical director for Anchorage. Different options for compensation are being considered due to the possible limited use.
e. Equipment – The outer carriers are the same color as current shirts. The pants are not cargo pants; they have a discreet zipper on each side. The shirt is a polo style with a cuff and patch. The patch can also be put on the carrier. This could mean another shirt will not be needed for Class B & C uniforms. All will be tested and evaluated. The pants might become part of the Class B uniform anyway.
Louisville Metro EMA has purchased drones to use as first responders (DFR). These drones can track suspects, have night-vision capability, and can be deployed remotely. They are connected to CAD, so dispatch can enter coordinates and send a drone directly to the location. Chief Wilkerson has signed an MOU with Louisville Metro EMA and serves as a voting member representing the suburban police agencies. Because of this partnership, SMPD may be able to piggyback on their process to purchase the same type of drones. The board is being formed to establish policies and procedures for shared use of the drones. One of the main challenges for the city is the low or restricted flight ceiling due to our proximity to Bowman Field.
f. Events – SMPD escorted Toys for Tots motorcycle run.
5. Meeting Adjournment
a. Motion: Councilmember Holland made a motion to adjourn the meeting.
b. Second: Councilman Bowling
c. Vote: The motion passed unanimously, and the meeting concluded at 6:58 PM.
Barry S. Wilkerson
Chief of Police, Chair
Attest:
Judi Kassebaum
City Clerk
