LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – “Go call the police then if you think this is a drug house,” a man I was trying to interview said to me. “Get that away from my face man. Go talk to somebody else.”
That’s the problem. Weeks before that exchange I had talked to somebody else. Several people, neighbors and others about what’s going on at 1215 Euclid in Louisville. Their complaints were not about the fact it’s the busiest house on the block. Parties covering the lawn all the way out to the sidewalk. Cars lined up on the street. Their complaints to the WAVE Troubleshooters were about something much more serious.
”1215 Euclid has a dope house that needs to be shut down,” one wrote to the Troubleshooters tip line.
“Called police, detectives, 311, nothing done.”
”We need your help.“
”A man overdosed in there I called the fire department.“
”Cars pulling up and these guys go to the cars they are serving.“
”Fixed up to pass off as a clubhouse but drugs are being passed through.”
That was the word everyone used throughout my investigation: clubhouse. But what’s the club?
From my undercover position down the street, I recorded cars pulling up in front, somebody from the house walking out, and exchanges made through the waiting windows. One after another all hours of the day and evening. Many different people went out and filled whatever the drive-through orders were. So busy, cars began to stack up in the street and they got to them when they could. The people hanging out at 1215 Euclid walked to neighboring properties and just urinated right there in broad daylight. Neighbors too afraid to go on camera told us none of them lived there. What were the car window exchanges all about? Hard to say, but one guy on the porch was counting out something in his palm from what appeared to be a white package. And it was all going on with kids out in the street. When I saw enough that matched what neighbors were telling me, I came out of hiding to ask some questions.
”Hi sir, I’m John Boel with WAVE News,” I said.
“Yeah,” he responded.
“You live here?” I asked.
“No,” he said. “I grew up around here. Get that camera out of my face.”
“I’m checking out a complaint on a drug house here,” I said.
“Ain’t no drug house here,” he said. “Somebody told you a lie. Somebody told you a lie. I’ll tell you who it is, but get that camera out of my face. Ain’t nothing going on here. We have a neighborhood clubhouse here.”
”So I’ve been sitting back watching,” I said. “What I’ve been seeing is a whole lot of people coming out of that house, cars pull up, something going on hand to hand through the window.”
“You’re lying,” he said.
“I’ve got a lot of video,” I said. “Lot of video. Been out here last several weeks. Way this works, cars pull up, bunch of people in the yard.”
“Call the police and have them go in there if you think that’s a drug house,” he said. “Get that out my face man.”
Our investigation found city code inspectors have visited 1215 Euclid nine times since March and issued code violations for “Cleaning, Terminated Utilities, Exterior Surface, Window, Accessory Structure, and Dangerous Tree.” Neighbors said the violations weren’t even making it to the homeowners.
”There’s also code violations here is that correct?” I asked the man.
“And we’re getting them done,” he said. “Go look in the back since you want to tell everybody. Get your ass back here and look what we’re doing.”
“OK, so you’re complying with the codes violations?” I asked.
“Yes we are,” he said. “Quit talking to me.”
“Also, somebody overdosed in this house in June?” I asked.
“Yeah,” he said. “Yeah.”
What about the owner of this home? I reached his residence. He is said to be very ill and bedridden. His caretaker and power of attorney said no one is paying rent and didn’t know anything about the code violations when I told her about them. She said she had no idea what was going on at the home because she hadn’t been there in a long time.
Neighbors told me the man I was trying to interview was Brian Britt. That checked out with his mug shots on his prior offenses like cocaine possession, and one in 2015 where he pleaded guilty to 1st degree cocaine trafficking. He got probation.
”And put that on the news,” he said as we walked away.
I contacted Chief Paul Humphrey about this situation. He said the 4th division Impact unit looked into it and turned it over to the Criminal Interdiction Division.
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