Nashville to launch investigation into complaint alleging police lobbied to gut oversight panel

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell on Friday announced an independent investigation following a complaint alleging the police department actively lobbied to gut the city’s community oversight board, as well as a number of other misconduct claims.

The complaint was filed earlier this month by Garet Davidson, who retired from the Metro Nashville Police Department in January. He worked two years in the department’s Office of Professional Accountability, which is the city’s internal affairs unit.

A redacted copy of the 61-page complaint provided by the police department outlines a long list of claims ranging from accusations that ranking personnel receive better outcomes in investigations, command staff being overly involved in internal investigations, officers purposefully not keeping records to avoid any incriminating paper trails, an improper reduction of police training for new recruits, and a failure to enact a “zero-tolerance” policy on sexual harassment and discrimination.

“I believe it’s important — and I believe the public expects — that we establish impartiality when it comes to serious allegations about conduct within Metro, and it is important to conduct an independent investigation into the recent allegations made by former MNPD Lt. Garet Davidson and filed with MNPD’s Office of Professional Accountability,” O’Connell said in a statement Friday.

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