Louisville mayor's race plays out amid lingering tensions

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) — Louisville mayoral candidate Craig Greenberg had a bounce in his step as he made his way from house to house in search of voters on a cold spring afternoon. But when people recognized him, it wasn't for reasons he’d anticipated when he announced his run last year.

Some had seen news reports from Feb. 14, when a man showed up at Greenberg's campaign headquarters and fired multiple rounds at the candidate and his staff, who barricaded the door with tables and chairs. No one was hit, but a bullet grazed Greenberg's sweater. A local social justice activist was charged in the attempted shooting.

Now Greenberg has resumed his campaign in a city roiled by racial tension, a spike in gun violence and deep misgivings many harbor about the Louisville police department.

Two years ago, this city of roughly 600,000 was known primarily as the home of the Kentucky Derby, bourbon whiskey and Muhammad Ali. Then a botched police raid in March 2020 left Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, dead in her own apartment at the hands of white police officers.

Her name was plastered on T-shirts and magazines. It swept across social media and resounded in city streets as thousands marched nationwide, demanding justice. And her death still reverberates in local politics.

Not long after the attempt on Greenberg's life, the only officer criminally charged for his actions in the Taylor raid was acquitted by a Kentucky jury, leaving many with a sense that the justice system had fallen short.

The suspect in Greenberg's shooting, Quintez Brown, 21, was also on the May 17 ballot, a candidate for metro council. Now he’s in federal custody, charged with state and federal crimes that could put him away for the rest of his life. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Brown,...