LONDON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Laurel County elected officials are calling on federal authorities to investigate the December 2024 death of a Lily, Kentucky, man who was shot and killed by a London police officer inside his own home.
In a letter dated February 23, 2026, Laurel County Judge Executive David Westerfield formally requested that the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Kentucky conduct an inquiry into the death of Douglas "Doug" Harless. The letter was also addressed to the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.
Harless, a 63-year-old maintenance worker and lifelong resident of Lily, Kentucky, was shot and killed inside his own home by officers of the London Police Department during the reported execution of a search warrant on December 23, 2024.
On February 20, 2026, after more than a year-long investigation by the Kentucky State Police and a referral to Special Prosecutor Matthew Leveridge of Wayne County, the case was presented to a Laurel County grand jury. The grand jury returned a no-bill, declining to indict any officer involved.
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"We respect the grand jury process. However, many residents of Laurel County have expressed their fear and uncertainty following the announcement of no indictment. The people of Laurel County are concerned, as are the undersigned elected officials. The limited information available regarding this incident leads us to believe that something of this nature could happen again to anyone in this community, and justice, as we have witnessed in this case, may fall under question," the letter said.
The officials are requesting that federal authorities conduct or expand an inquiry into whether the civil rights of Harless under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments were violated, and whether those violations give rise to federal criminal liability under applicable statutes.
"Douglas Harless lost his life on December 23, 2024, in what appears to be a preventable and serious error, and the community of Laurel County has spent over fourteen months being denied the full truth of how and why that error occurred," the letter said.
The letter further states that the grand jury's no-bill does not foreclose a federal examination of the civil rights implications and the integrity of the process itself, and that the Harless family "deserves complete confidence that all aspects of this case are being reviewed with the highest level of scrutiny."
"Transparency and accountability are essential to restoring public trust and preserving confidence in our system of justice," the letter said.
The request carries the signatures of Westerfield and 12 other Laurel County elected officials, including Sheriff John Root, County Clerk Tony Brown, Coroner Doug Bowling, Property Valuation Administrator Don McFadden, Jailer Jamie Mosley, Surveyor Chris Hubbard, and Magistrates John Crawford, Danny Smith, Bobby Overbay, Jeff Book, Billy B. Oakley, and Richard Bales.
The letter was addressed to U.S. Attorney Paul McCaffrey of the Eastern District of Kentucky, FBI Director Kash Patel, and the DOJ Civil Rights Division.
Read the full document below:
