Complaints and Data

The Lincoln Police Department will accept complaints from any witness or any person who has direct knowledge of employee misconduct. LPD will investigate any employee action that may be contrary to department policy, violates the law, involves excessive force, or discourteous treatment.

Complaints can be filed through the Internal Affairs office, by speaking with an on-duty supervisor either in-person or over the phone, in-person at an LPD station, or by mailing a complaint statement(PDF, 206KB) to LPD Headquarters. More details on the complaints process can be found on our Professional Standards page.


Statistics

In 2023, we investigated 427 complaints made against department employees. That total increased 3.6% from the 412 complaints investigated in 2022. Of those 427 investigations, 203 (47.5%) were initiated internally by employees while 224 (52.5%) were in response to a citizen's inquiry. This means that almost half of the complaints investigated were initiated by co-workers or supervisors who believed a possible policy violation had occurred. Of the 427 total complaints, 207 resulted in disciplinary action for the employee. That disciplinary action could range from additional required training all the way up to loss of employment at LPD.

Complaint Data | 2023 Total
Percentage
Total complaints 427 100%
Complaints initiated internally 203 47.5%
Complaints initiated by citizens 224 52.5%
Complaints resulting in discipline 207 48.5%

 

The Internal Affairs Unit investigates the more serious complaints made against officers. In 2023, Internal Affairs completed 31 investigations involving 52 total officers. Out of those 31 investigations, 14 were initiated by the chief of police, which is further evidence of the level of accountability expected of employees of the Lincoln Police Department.

Since 2002, the department has also utilized the Early Warning Tracking System (EWTS). This system identifies employees who may be experiencing a pattern of performance problems. The system tracks use of control incidents, vehicle accidents, on-duty injuries, and citizen complaints made against employees. These incidents are documented, tracked, and evaluated by the employee's supervisors, Internal Affairs, and the chief of police.