Published on April 21, 2026
People assume when they see an officer in a parking lot, they aren’t doing anything. That’s probably not true. Being a police officer involves an enormous amount of paperwork. If you see a cop in a parking lot, they might be writing reports, eating lunch, or making a phone call. All safer to do while not driving.
Things aren’t “getting bad” in Lawrence. Generally speaking, violent crime in Lawrence is down over the last few years. It’s likely that people are just more aware of what’s going on in town thanks to the evolution of social media and our efforts to let the community know where we are and why. We know when people see police lights, they have a natural curiosity, or even concern, about what might be going on. We get it. We want to help you understand what you’re seeing - but we can’t possibly share everything. We normally respond to over 400 calls per day, so we try to share the big ones. Lawrence is a safe city to live. Many officers live here too. Follow us on Facebook to get regular updates about the incidents in town.
It’s all about Jurisdiction. The Sheriff’s Office has jurisdiction over the entire county, and we have jurisdiction anywhere in the city limits. Kansas University Police are a state agency – they generally stick to the campus but have jurisdiction all over the state. What’s jurisdiction? It means where a law enforcement officer has the legal authority to take enforcement action, but it’s not totally restricted. For instance, if the Sheriff’s Office is working an incident outside city limits and ask for our help, just like that, we have the jurisdiction to assist.