Cities across the U.S. are grappling with how to reform their police departments — or start over altogether — as one killing of Black person by police after another makes headlines. But in Nashville, like in most places, change has never been quick or easy. In this episode, we explore just how difficult it can be to spark real change. And why so many past reforms have failed to earn Black residents' trust.  Credits: WPLN News Investigates: Deadly Force is a production of Nashville Public Radio. Editing for this episode came from Chas Sisk, Emily Siner and Anita Bugg, with additional editing from Tony Gonzalez, Meribah Knight and Dwight Lewis. Fact checking by Daniel Potter. This episode was written, produced and sound designed by  Samantha Max. Chas Sisk, Shalina Chatlani and Tony Gonzalez also contributed reporting.   Our music is from Blue Dot Sessions. The news tape we used in this episode comes from CBS and CNN. Archival tape of Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Ronald Reagan comes from the Miller Center at the University of Virginia and the Reagan Library.  The advertisement you heard is from Vote No Nashville. Sound of Sheila Clemmons Lee delivering signatures comes from the Tennessean. Audio from the election night celebration is from Community Oversight Now. 

WPLN News Investigates: Deadly Force

Episode 4: The Cost Of Change

When Officer Andrew Delke killed Daniel Hambrick, he became the first Nashville police officer to be charged with murder for an on-duty shooting. But he's not the first to kill a civilian, nor the first white officer to kill a Black man. In this episode, we dissect half a century of trauma, anger and escalating distrust as one shooting after the next failed to bring about reform. And we try to understand why this shooting is the one that's going to trial.

Episode 3: The Last Straw

Metro Nashville Police Officer Andrew Delke says he was following his training when he shot and killed Daniel Hambrick during a foot chase. So do his attorneys and supporters at the police union. In this episode, we take a deep dive into the department's training and culture that teaches officers when to use force. And the mixed messages officers receive, both in the academy and on the streets. Credits: WPLN News Investigates: Deadly Force is a production of Nashville Public Radio. Editing for this episode came from Chas Sisk, Emily Siner and Anita Bugg, with additional editing from Tony Gonzalez, Meribah Knight and Dwight Lewis. Fact checking by Daniel Potter. The episode was written, produced and sound designed by Samantha Max. Chas Sisk also contributed reporting. Our music is from Blue Dot Sessions. The dash camera audio you heard at the beginning of this episode is a YouTube clip featured in the Metro Nashville Police Department's Officer Survival course. Andrew Delke's interview audio comes from the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

Episode 2: Action Beats Reaction

On July 26, 2018, the lives of two 25-year-old men crossed paths at a stop sign. That chance encounter would take one life and forever change another. And it would lead to the first murder charges brought against a Nashville police officer for an on-duty killing of a civilian. In this episode, we examine the lives of both men.  Credits: WPLN News Investigates: Deadly Force is a production of Nashville Public Radio. Editing for this episode came from Chas Sisk, Emily Siner and Anita Bugg, with additional editing from Tony Gonzalez, Meribah Knight and Dwight Lewis. Fact checking by Daniel Potter. The episode was written, produced and sound designed by Samantha Max. Tony Gonzalez, Meribah Knight, Shalina Chatlina, Eli Newman and Chris Ehrman also contributed reporting.  The music in this episode is from Blue Dot Sessions. The Metro Nashville Emergency Communications Center provided the police dispatch tape. 

Episode 1: The Intersection

A nationwide movement has erupted in recent weeks, calling for drastic changes in law enforcement. These systemic issues aren't new. WPLN News is launching a new podcast, Deadly Force, which investigates how officers are trained to use force, as well as the role of race in policing.

Deadly Force: Trailer

WPLN News Investigates dives deep into the issues that matter most in Middle Tennessee. In “Deadly Force,” we focus on the trial of the first Nashville police officer to be charged with murder for shooting someone in the line of duty. Through newly uncovered documents, original interviews and audio footage, we’ll glimpse into the mind of a police officer struggling to make sense of when to use his gun and the culture in Nashville surrounding the use of force.

WPLN News Investigates: Deadly Force — An Update

Trailer

Nine months before Nashville Officer Andrew Delke shot and killed Daniel Hambrick, he was criticized by supervisors. But not for use of force. It was a night when Delke didn't pull his gun. In the prologue to "WPLN News Investigates: Deadly Force," we'll glimpse into the mind of a police officer struggling to make sense of when to use his gun.

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WPLN News Investigates: Deadly Force

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