An incident involving a Salina Police Officer illegally parking a police vehicle in a handicapped parking spot while on duty is being investigated by the agency.

According to the police department, on Monday October 13th, they were made aware of a parking incident which occurred a week prior, on Monday October 6th, with a marked Salina Police Department patrol SUV parking in a handicapped designated parking space at a south Salina business. This matter was brought to the department’s attention by a private citizen and was not raised by anyone associated with that business.

The agency says they take citizen complaints seriously, as they see it as an opportunity to examine daily operations and provides a different perspective and concerns of the community. This incident has provided an opportunity to look into the citizen concerns internally and operationally. The matter has been looked into to understand all the circumstances around it, including speaking with the employees of the private business.

The on duty Salina Police Officer was conducting follow-up on an ongoing criminal investigation at the time of the incident, and parked in the only available parking space at the business. A photograph was taken of the patrol SUV. The photograph was later forwarded on and was eventually passed on to the Police Department.

The Salina Police Officer who was driving the patrol SUV at the time was contacted and is this being addressed as an internal matter. The Salina Police Department is also taking steps internally to ensure all officers are following Kansas traffic codes as it pertains to police operations as well as Salina Police Department and City of Salina policies.

The Salina Police Department would like to thank community members for raising their concerns, and they strive to review their actions on a daily basis to do better and always provide the highest standard of service to the City.