NICHOLASVILLE, Ky. (LEX 18) — The family of Desman LaDuke took their fight for justice to Nicholasville’s City Commission Meeting on Monday night.
“We reached out for help with his thoughts of suicide, NPD responded with a shot through his chest,” Melissa Marks said, recounting the October day when police shot and killed 22-year-old Desman LaDuke.
Monday’s meeting is the last place she’d want to be, she said. She came to the meeting after not being satisfied with what she considered to be the city and police department’s lack of response.
Marks said police have denied all of their open records requests for documents and body camera footage, adding the family's own investigation found Nicholasville Police violated their own policies.
In order to heal, transparency from public officials and the department is required, said family friend Tori Kittoe.
KSP is investigating, which is a standard for officer-involved shootings.
"The death of Desman LaDuke was a tragic outcome of a difficult situation,” said Mayor Alex Carter. “The Nicholasville Police Department continues to cooperate fully with the ongoing investigation."
The city will only take and consider action after the investigation concludes, Carter said. Police body camera footage, which is one of the things Marks says she requested and was denied, was provided to a lawyer working on behalf of LaDuke’s estate to sue the department under conditions it couldn’t be distributed.
Marks told LEX 18 last fall she has nothing to do with the lawsuit. It was filed by LaDuke's biological father who, unlike Marks, was not responsible for raising LaDuke, she said.
"At this time the city has listened tentatively to your concerns and we appreciate that,” Carter said. “We genuinely appreciate what you have to say, we have no further comment at this time"
One of the people who was their to support Marks shouted this isn't over and “we will be back.”
Marks called the mayor’s response cold and callous, saying it lacked emotion and was a politicized response.
She’d been hoping for an apology.
"Any kind of remorse, any kind of sincerity, any kind of movement forward, any kind of plans to move forward to make changes, I was hoping to hear those things," Marks said.
She hopes no other person facing a mental health challenge loses their life.
