Force of impact in LMPD detective’s death revealed in court

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - The trial in the death of a Louisville Metro Police Department detective is nearing an end with prosecutors calling their last witness Friday.

Prosecutors focused on the force of the impact when Roger Burdette’s MSD truck crashed into Deidre Mengedoht’s Ford Taurus — an unmarked police vehicle.

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On a responding officer’s body camera video, Burdette is heard saying moments after the crash that he’d tried to “switch over” and that he wasn’t even sure if he had hit her car.

That’s not what investigators said happened Friday, testifying he never slowed down before the crash.

“I didn’t see any kind of skid marks or anything prior to the impact,” LMPD Public Integrity Unit Sgt. Omar Lee testified.

Lee said that he oversaw the review of video taken from a nearby building, which supported his conclusion that Burdette never swerved.

“I counted about 28 or 29 vehicles in total, one of those being the semi, that was able to move over with no issue,” Lee said.

The data retrieved from Mengedoht’s car revealed the force with which the vehicle was struck — 49.7 miles per hour. That was also evidence, according to prosecutors, that Burdette was distracted and never saw her car.

“The damage to the rear of the vehicle, forced the trunk forward,” LMPD Traffic Unit Officer Dean Kisling said. “Actually, pushing the rear bumper and the trunk forward of the gas tank, the gas tank was ruptured. There is a hole in the gas tank, which led to our fire.”

The trial is expected to continue Tuesday, with closing arguments happening on Wednesday.