Law enforcement officers on Friday urged a Nebraska legislative committee to support a proposal that would partially shield their home addresses from public disclosure to help protect them from retaliation.
A third-generation Lincoln Police officer, who is a gang unit investigator, told members of the Government, Military and Veterans Affairs Committee that he has been targeted at home and on the internet.
In one case, following the arrest of two brothers, dozens of dead animals began showing up on his property, he said, some of them beheaded and most badly mangled.
The officer, who asked that his name not be used, said comments were posted on the internet including threats to sexually assault family members and post video recordings of the assaults online.
Lincoln City Councilman Roy Christensen said police officers "deal with the dark underside of our culture," and legislative action is needed "so darkness will not follow them home."
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Christensen said 25 percent of Lincoln's police officers do not live in the city and he is told that is because "families don't feel safe living in Lincoln (when) bad actors can find their home address."
The proposed legislation (LB624), introduced by Lincoln Sen. Anna Wishart, would provide a means to withhold residential addresses of law enforcement officers from the public -- online or by phone.Â
The address could be requested in writing from the county assessor where it is a public record. That requirement "takes away the anonymity" of the person seeking the address, Wishart said.
Law enforcement officers "come face-to-face with danger every day," Wishart said, and her bill would provide "an added barrier of protection for officers and their families."
The committee was told that officers are increasingly targeted nationally. In Nebraska, they sometimes are stalked, and their families have been threatened. In one case, a bullet was fired into an officer's home and penetrated his 18-month-old son's bedroom.
Under the proposed legislation, officers can request that the assessors and registrars of deeds withhold their addresses, except upon written request. The bill provides that requesting officers would pay a $25 fee. Â