POLICE STEERING COMMITTEE
September 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 6:06 PM.
2. Roll Call – Chief Barry S. Wilkerson, Major Leon E. Jones, Jr, Major Anthony J. Cobaugh, Mayor Richard J. Tonini, Councilman Bernard F. Bowling, Jr., Councilman Timothy Holland
Also in attendance: Judi Kassebaum, City Clerk
3. Approval of Minutes (08/26/2025)
a. Councilmember Bowling made a motion to accept the minutes.
b. Second: Councilman Holland
c. Vote: Motion carried unanimously
4. Pending Business
a. Personnel– An officer will have surgery November 3 and be off work 2-3 months. They should be able to return to light duty for the rest of the recovery time which could be up to 9 additional months. This injury is related to a worker’s comp claim from October 2024. Postings for a full-time and part-time position were advertised August 29. To date, no applications have been received. Troy Armstrong has indicated he will apply for the part-time position. Chief Wilkerson will relax the tattoo policy, allowing tattoos to be seen on officer’s arms.
b. Equipment – Chief Wilkerson explained the outer carrier will be cut similar to the uniform shirts. It will be the same material and color, with the SMPD patch, and St. Matthews on the top back of the shirt. The pants will be 6 pocket navy cargo pants with no flaps. The Class C pants will be the same style but khaki in color. The shirt will be used for both Class B and C uniforms. The officers want the carrier because of the lighter weight and ease of putting it on and off, in addition to being able to remove items from the belt. These can be purchased with seized funds. To prepare for the migration of the new MDTs, IT will need to ensure each officer is running OneDrive to avoid losing information when transferring to the new MDT.
c. Opioid Funds – Chief Wilkerson will use opioid funds for training in fentanyl investigations. The cost of $6,500 allows 30 participants. The Chief will invite officers from other local small cities to participate at no cost, as SMPD will not fill all 30 slots. Detectives Coty and Hardin took the course and highly recommended it. The training will take place in The Arterburn on October 29, 2025. It was suggested that Victim Services Specialist Estep-Book give drug prevention presentations at local schools. Her salary for the presentations can be reimbursed with opioid funds.
d. Crime – As stated last meeting, shoplifting continues to be one of the City’s highest crimes. Major Cobaugh contacted large local businesses (Mall, Plaza, Best Buy, Home Depot, Target, Kroger) to set up a meeting at the Arterburn advocating for more support in loss prevention per KRS 433.236. St. Matthews will have zero tolerance for shoplifting. Chief Wilkerson contacted Commonwealth Attorney Gerina Whethers regarding the lack of prosecution for organized shoplifting. A pedestrian was hit by a train on September 3 near Thierman Ln. A suicide note was found in their vehicle.
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 6:48 PM.
Barry S. Wilkerson, Chief of Police, Chair
Attest: Judi Kassebaum, City Clerk
