Lincoln Rape Incidents Up 65% in 2026 Following Historic Surge Last Year
by John Gage
(Photo courtesy of the Lincoln Police Department)
Reports of rapes continue to rise in the capital city following a historic spike in the number of reports in 2025, according to recently released data from the Lincoln Police Department (LPD).
LPD released updated numbers from the start of 2026 through the beginning of April, and the report showed the number of rapes in the city was up 65% from 49 cases year-to-date (YTD) in 2025 to 81 cases in 2026. Overall, violent crime was down 9% YTD compared to 2025 and up 7% YTD over the 5-year average.
Last month, Lincoln Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird joined LPD to release the 2025 annual crime report for the city. While the mayor touted a 20-year low in overall crime, the report showed violent crime in Lincoln spiked 32% in one year.
The number of reported rapes went up 70% from 2024 to 2025, with 157 rapes reported in 2024 and 267 rapes in 2025. Additionally, the city’s clearance for reported rapes in 2025 was 8.6%, a number the LPD Chief Michon Morrow blamed on “turnover in the leadership.”
During the report announcement, Morrow downplayed the increase in 2025 rape reports, stating the numbers “looks more” when you look at the percentage because “it is smaller numbers to begin with.”
The Plains Sentinel has reached out to LPD for comment on their latest crime data.
Morrow previously attributed a rise in rape reports to Lincoln residents “feeling more comfortable” reporting crime. “Arguably, I think it could also be viewed as we are creating a law enforcement agency with the resources that we have, that people are feeling more comfortable in coming forward,” she said.
Lincoln’s rise in both overall violent crime and reported rapes in 2025 was the largest jump in both crime categories in the past two decades.
John Gage is the executive editor of The Plains Sentinel.
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This is the fault of Mayor LGB. Why isn't she doing something?