Lancaster County Libertarian Party Condemns Police, City Council Abuse of Power

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

10/10/2022

Correspondents: Trevor Reilly & Schuyler Windham

Lincoln, NE – The 'right to privacy from unreasonable search and seizure' and the 'presumption of innocence until proven guilty' are fundamental rights protected by the U.S. Constitution. Lincoln residents have the power to hold local government accountable by insisting on restraints to police authority and enacting transparency measures.

The last couple of years, the Lincoln City Council and Lincoln Police Department have spiraled out of control. Recently, LPD has attempted to conceal allegations of sexual harassment and assault within the department to the point of punishing whistleblowers. Last spring, a protester won a settlement when LPD used excessive force against her in 2020, yet LPD refuses to release body camera footage.

Instead of increasing transparency and scrutiny around internal practices, the Lincoln City Council passed a memorandum of understanding to approve the use of invasive facial recognition software between LPD and the Department of Motor Vehicles. Everyone with an ID from the DMV is a potential suspect with this intrusive technology. The risk of misidentifying someone is high, especially with phenomena such as automaton confirmation bias in which the user easily accepts the computer’s results.

The potential consequences are dire: innocent people being accused and deprived of liberty and the eventual accepted use of this flawed technology as evidence in court.

Additionally, LPD threatened to begin confiscating vehicles as a punishment for events such as Americruise over Memorial Day weekend. When asked about how the city could regulate 'unsanctioned' car shows, Police Chief Ewins referenced her time working with the San Francisco Police Department. “We started taking people’s cars when they’re identified as being part of these sideshows and endangering the public,” Ewins said. “To the degree that it was in the Bay Area, we don’t have that here, but we need to be strong about people who are going to come to Lincoln and have this behavior.”

That would be a clear privacy and due process Constitutional violation, but Ewins does not seem to care about Lincoln residents' property rights.

The Lancaster County Libertarian Party denounces the grotesque and mounting abuse of local government authority over our lives and privacy. LPD is serving and protecting the government interest, not We the People. Restraints should be placed on police power so our Constitutional rights are protected from violation. Transparency measures must be enacted so Lincoln residents can hold the local government and police force accountable. LCLP calls for a community policing structure which respects Lincoln residents and our Constitutional rights while serving and protecting the public safety interest over politicians' interests.

Protect our civil liberties by voicing your concerns at an upcoming Lincoln City Council public meeting or contact your City Council representative today. Consider the following topics and talking points of interest:

• Police Brutality / Excessive use of force

• Enforcing use of body cameras for every officer & transparency around the footage

• Protecting our Constitutional rights from 4th, 5th, 6th, and 14th amendment violations (facial recognition software privacy and presumption of innocence; confiscating property without due process)

• Transparency around sexual harassment and assault complaints; call out retribution against whistleblower(s)

• Officers shielded from legal accountability when they violate the law (qualified immunity)

• Overall reduce random interactions over minor infractions with police

• Wrong door issues; negligence

• Civil Asset Forfeiture: Lancaster County Police Department taking money and property from individuals for department use even where no crime was committed

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