The
Lincoln Police Department is going through a re-accreditation process right now. As part of the process, the public get to come out and tell why they think LPD should or should not be accredited. How do you think LPD is doing?
Personally, the only interaction I've had with LPD since high school was getting fingerprinted as part of the background check process before we adopted Robert. The folks doing the fingerprinting had a nice sense of humor about the fact that I have (almost) no fingerprints. I am proud to hold the distinction of "Worst Set of 10 Fingerprints Ever" according to one woman who had worked there for many years.
Outside of my own experience, it's rare to hear more than a minor complaint about LPD. Sure, some people think they're too picky about parking enforcement, or maybe they don't do traffic enforcement the way you'd like. But has there been a major LPD-related incident since Mr. (Carlos?) Renteria's death? Major incidents are so rare,
the use of a Taser was big news earlier this year. (A friend of mine from high school was the Taser-er, incidentally.)
There are things about LPD I wish were done differently, and there are things about Chief Tom Cassidy's
law enforcement philosophies I don't necessarily agree with. But they are pretty small items. And in Chief Cassidy's case, at least he has the chutzpah to post his thoughts for the world to see. How many police chiefs -- or even government officials generally -- write such honest and unsanitized prose on such a regular basis?
So what do you think, should LPD keep its accreditation? What are the big issues LPD needs to work out over, say, the next five years?