Prospect police seek full-time traffic officer as department details traffic, staffing and enforcement grant

Chief Tony Denham and Assistant Chief Michael McKeon told the Prospect City Council on Feb. 26 that Prospect’s police department is back to near full staffing but needs a dedicated traffic officer to confront heavy vehicle volumes on U.S. 42 and related safety concerns.

The council heard that the department has 12 sworn officers with one vacant part‑time position, that Barbara Shepherd (from Saint Matthews) started Dec. 1 and that Officer Joe Manning recently returned from an injured‑reserve absence. Denham said mutual‑aid and critical‑incident agreements with Metro Louisville have been renewed and updated, including arrangements for SWAT and public integrity support.

Why it matters: Prospect officers report daily traffic on U.S. 42 at roughly 27,000 vehicles and rising congestion. The chiefs said the volume — not only speeding — creates public‑safety and enforcement challenges that, they argue, are best addressed by a specialist traffic officer and by having two officers on traffic details during peak periods.

Denham described a new housewatch tool for residents that logs checks from officers in real time: "When they leave, pull out the driveway as long as they're not on another run, they can get in, get on the computer, pop, hit it, and you get a notification that they were at your house," he said. He added the system allows officers to add notes visible to homeowners.

Michael McKeon presented the department’s traffic data and the limits of a federal overtime grant the city is considering. He said the city applied for a $10,000 enforcement grant that would fund overtime patrols outside regular hours. "Out of that hundred and 66 hours, we would expect, to get about 350 speeding tickets," McKeon said, adding the department’s seat‑belt survey on 42 found about 84 percent compliance versus a 93 percent benchmark the state uses.

McKeon said the grant administrator’s emphasis on seat‑belt enforcement — rather than Prospect’s top concern of speeding on 42 — already narrowed the program’s usefulness to the city. "They were interested in getting enforcement done on 42, but they didn't want speeding citations," he said. "If it doesn't fit what we need to do, I'm not going to take the $10,000 just to use the money." The chiefs said the grant would reimburse overtime after the city pays officers.

Denham urged a long‑term staffing change: a full‑time traffic officer who could handle crash reconstruction, coordinate with surrounding agencies and provide specialized enforcement. He said traffic enforcement requires discretion and training and noted the department’s historical use of part‑time officers — limited by pension rules to roughly 12 workdays per month — constrains scheduling and retention.

Council members and staff also discussed recent criminal trends, including an uptick in vehicle thefts in neighboring jurisdictions, and two recent DUI arrests in Prospect. Denham and McKeon advised residents to lock vehicles and remove visible valuables.

The chiefs closed by asking council members to consider the department’s request when setting the budget and to coordinate with police leadership for follow‑up discussions.