NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The Davidson County Grand Jury is recommending that the Nashville District Attorney appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the Metro Nashville Police Department following a months-long session and several testimonies from former MNPD employees.

According to the grand jury, testimonies and the review of several cases revealed "clear patterns of uneven use of discretionary power by law enforcement originating from how they conduct their investigations, up to and including, the filing of charges against defendants."

In their quarterly report, the grand jury referenced the 61-page whistleblower complaint that was filed by a former Nashville lieutenant, which alleged years of misconduct. Even though an independent law firm was tasked with leading an investigation into the complaint, the public has yet to hear updates on the investigation.

During a Community Review Board meeting last month, members expressed their frustrations after learning that the law firm was allegedly raided by the TBI in November 2024 and they knew nothing about it.

Due to the lack of updates, the grand jury stated that they felt it was "incumbent" to look into the allegations. As a result, a retired detective and retired captain were called upon to testify.

The retired detective's statements reportedly addressed the longstanding, largely unaddressed issues of sexual misconduct within the MNPD. The police department has since adopted part of a sexual misconduct policy which will protect officers and the public from harassment and assaults.

Meanwhile, the retired captain—who was the highest-ranking Black female officer in the department at one point—described how she was discriminated and retaliated against when she pushed for more resources and support for her department, per the grand jury. Her testimony reportedly addressed a culture of favoritism and corruption within the department, as well.

According to the grand jury, testimonies from additional officers detailed alleged incidents of supervisors interfering in investigations, policies and practices which inflate response times, and instances of retaliation against officers who fell out of favor with their supervisors.

In addition to the testimonies, the report revealed the whistleblower complaints exposed a "culture of racism, sexism, and internal misconduct that erodes public trust."

"We feel these complaints coming from multiple sources and basically saying the same things are strong evidence of a serious problem within MNPD, which is not being recognized or addressed," the grand jury stated.

After hearing several testimonies and reviewing whistleblower complaints, the grand jury said they feel that there is enough evidence to warrant the District Attorney to appoint a special prosecutor to do a thorough investigation into all the allegations within the police department.

The District Attorney's Office did not have a comment on the grand jury's recommendation when News 2 reached out.

News Source : https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/nashville/report-grand-jury-calls-for-special-prosecutor-to-investigate-mnpd-after-testimonies-from-former-employees/