Wednesday, April 01, 2009

Officer Lance Bennett Resigns After being Accused of Peeping into Womans Window

A Nebraska City police officer accused of peeping into a window to watch a woman take a bath has resigned from the force.

Lance Bennett submitted his resignation last week, days after he entered a written not guilty plea in Otoe County Court to a charge of second-degree criminal trespass, a misdemeanor. According to the criminal complaint, Bennett improperly went onto the property of Erik and Brenda Cunningham sometime around 10 p.m. on Aug. 6, 2008.

That night, Erik Cunningham went outside and found Bennett crouched on his back porch, wearing his police uniform. The officer had parked his police cruiser more than a block from the couple's house.

A next-door neighbor later told the Cunninghams that he had seen a man looking through a lighted window at the back of the couple's house. Brenda Cunningham, 32, was in the couple's bathroom taking a bath at the time.

Attempts to reach Bennett have been unsuccessful. His attorney, John Voelker of Nebraska City, did not return calls seeking comment.

Bennett, 29, had worked as a Nebraska City police officer since 2006.

On March 12, the city put Bennett on unpaid suspension after the Nebraska Attorney General's Office charged him with trespassing. He had spent more five months on paid administrative leave while the matter was under investigation, Police Chief David Lacy said Tuesday.

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