Lexington police stop community survey after residents raise concerns
The Lexington Police Department has suspended a survey gathering feedback on the department’s relationship with the community.
The survey was up four days after launching on Friday.
“The decision to take down the questionnaire was made following concerns from residents about the survey’s format,” police spokeswoman Brenna Angel said in a statement. “These were voiced to both public officials and the department about the way the questions were worded, and the lack of more scaled-response options.”
Sarah Williams, a protest organizer who’s heavily involved in a group seeking greater Lexington police accountability, told the Herald-Leader that the survey lacked “middle ground” options. Respondents were limited to either supporting or opposing police, Williams said.
Participants were asked if they agree or disagree with statements about police department operations and officers’ interactions with the community. Examples: “I’m confident the police will solve serious crime” and “I have confidence in police to generally do the right thing.”
Some questions asked participants if police should respond to calls about homeless people, mentally ill subjects and people with substance abuse disorders.
One question asked if the police department should be abolished, and respondents on both sides of recent policing debates took issue with it.
“None of us support just completely abolishing the police department,” Williams said. Some just want changes.
Some people who strongly supported police also took issue with the format of the questions.
“It scares me that you even ask the question whether the LPD should be abolished,” Julie Hoover-Ernst said in response to the survey when the police department posted it on social media. “We need you and you need more support, not less!”
Some on social media were concerned the survey results were going to New York University. University researchers had partnered with the national nonprofit organization Police2Peace to build the survey, and they were going to share the results with Lexington leaders.
About 2,100 people responded to the survey, Angel said. The responses haven’t been reviewed by the police department or any city leaders, Angel said.
“The department will continue to explore ways of gathering feedback from residents and businesses,” Angel said.
This story was originally published October 20, 2020 at 10:05 AM.