David L. Armstrong

For other people with the same name, see David Armstrong (disambiguation).

David L. Armstrong (August 6, 1941 – June 15, 2017) was an American politician. He served as the mayor of Louisville, Kentucky from 1999 to 2003. He was the city's last mayor before its merger with Jefferson County to form Louisville Metro.

Dave Armstrong
56th Mayor of Louisville
In office January 1, 1999 – January 5, 2003
Preceded by	Jerry Abramson
Succeeded by	Jerry Abramson
Jefferson County Judge/Executive
In office 1989–1999
Preceded by	Harvey I. Sloane
Succeeded by	Rebecca Jackson
44th Attorney General of Kentucky
In office January 2, 1984 – January 4, 1988 Acting: December 13, 1983 – January 2, 1984
Governor	Martha Layne Collins Wallace Wilkinson
Preceded by	Steve Beshear
Succeeded by	Fred Cowan
Commonwealth's Attorney of Jefferson County
In office 1976–1983
Preceded by	Edwin Schroering
Succeeded by	Paul Richwalsky
Personal details
Born	(1941-08-06)August 6, 1941 Hope, Arkansas, U.S.
Died	June 15, 2017(2017-06-15) (aged 75)
Political party	Democratic
Education	Hanover College Murray State University (BA) University of Louisville (JD)

Early life and education

Armstrong was born in Hope, Arkansas. He was raised in Madison, Indiana. He attended Hanover College, where he became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity, before graduating from Murray State University in 1966. He earned a J.D. from the University of Louisville school of law in 1969.

Early career

Following graduation Armstrong worked in the public and private sector, including a term as a family court judge and election as Jefferson County's Commonwealth's Attorney, the local felony prosecutor. In 1983 Armstrong was elected Attorney General of Kentucky. He ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor in 1987, losing in the Democratic primary to Brereton C. Jones.

Mayor of Louisville

Prior to becoming mayor, he had served as Jefferson County Judge/Executive from 1989 until 1999. The city of Louisville was merged with Jefferson County near the end of his term; Armstrong was a supporter of the ballot measure that brought about the merger.

His term had several successes, most notably his support for the revitalization of Downtown Louisville. Some of the projects he championed were expansions of the medical district, a $111-million Marriott hotel, Fourth Street Live! and Louisville Glassworks. The Louisville Extreme Park, renamed in his honor in 2015, was one of his signature accomplishments as Mayor.

Armstrong's term as mayor was marked by several controversies. Several NBA teams at least considered a move to Louisville during his term, but nothing materialized. Armstrong was criticized for not exploring the possibility of a downtown arena for such a team, although Armstrong rebutted that he shouldn't have been singlehandedly expected to lure a franchise to Louisville. Nevertheless, some, including members of the city's NBA pursuit team, blamed Armstrong for a lack of leadership on the issue.

In 2000, Armstrong fired Police Chief Gene Sherrard, after Sherrard, without the mayor's knowledge, had approved valor awards for two officers involved in a deadly shooting with racial overtones. The officers had been cleared of charges in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black 18-year-old, Desmond Rudolph. The firing won praise from the African American community, but enraged police officers and supporters, leading to a march on Louisville City Hall.

Armstrong did not run to be the first mayor of Metro Louisville, where he would have been a heavy underdog to Jerry Abramson. In early 2007 Armstrong stated that he was considering a campaign for Governor of Kentucky, though he eventually chose not to run.

Armstrong died on June 15, 2017.

References

• Rodriguez, Nancy (2002-12-15). "Dave Armstrong; In four years as mayor, he helped reshape downtown but was dogged by controversy". Courier-Journal. p. 1A.
• FRANCIS X. CLINES, "Protesting by Angry Police Leaves Louisville Unsettled", NY Times, Section A, Page 12