Two Louisville Metro Police Department cruisers are parked under an overpass in Louisville. (J. Tyler Franklin / Louisville Public Media)As part of a federal consent decree, the Louisville Metro Police Department is expected to implement hundreds of changes to policy and training in the coming years. Researchers from Ohio State University will be embedded within the department to evaluate the effectiveness of the reforms in real-time.The creation of a “learning laboratory,” as one researcher called it, within LMPD is being funded by a $400,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice. The funding will cover the first two years of operation.At an announcement Wednesday morning, OSU Senior Research Scientist Robin Engel said allowing researchers into a police department that’s about to come under federal oversight “has never been done before in this country.”“As you move forward with these reforms, let’s test them in real time,” Engel said. “Let’s open ourselves up to becoming a learning laboratory and learn not just what works, but what doesn’t work and then correct course immediately.”Last month, Louisville Metro signed a consent decree with the DOJ, which lays out hundreds of changes LMPD will be required to make in the coming years. It’s meant to address the pattern of discriminatory and unconstitutional policing the DOJ found as part of a two-year investigation.The DOJ alleged in its 2023 report on the department that there was a widespread use of unreasonable force by LMPD officers, that investigations into police shootings were “flawed” and there were significant racial disparities in enforcement.A federal judge still needs to sign off on the agreement before it can take effect.Engel said researchers will help LMPD evaluate the impact of changes to department policies and officer training. She gave the example of a previous research project she did with LMPD, examining the effectiveness of de-escalation training.Engel said there was a 28% reduction in uses of force incidents, 26% reduction in citizen injuries during police encounters and a 36% reduction in officer injuries overall, after some LMPD divisions took part in the training.“That study was then used across the country and around the world to demonstrate that de-escalation training could have an impact that was really important for communities,” she said.Rather than a typical research approach, where evaluation and report writing happens long after a change takes place, Engel said the academics in this new “learning laboratory” will try to offer real-time feedback to LMPD leaders.Police Chief Paul Humphrey said the research team will work with the department’s Accountability and Improvement Bureau, which was created in 2021 to perform audits and review officer performance.“We want to be able to have evidence that shows that we are going in the right direction or that we need to change paths,” Humphrey said.In addition to tracking policy and training reforms, researchers from OSU will also study the officer wellness center that the city opened in 2023. The facility, located on Presidents Boulevard near Eastern Parkway, houses gym equipment, locker rooms and full-time mental health counselors.Louisville’s compliance with the goals of the consent decree will also be tracked by an independent monitor, who will be hired and paid for by the city. The monitor reports directly to the federal judge overseeing the agreement.