Fairbury Ordinance Officer Denies Public Records Request

By Gordon Hopkins The City of Fairbury’s Code Enforcement Officer denied a request for information about dog-related ordinance violation citations. That information was eventually supplied by the Fairbury City Clerk.On Thursday, September 11, 2025, FJN emailed city clerk Erin Reimer to ask how many dog-related citations had been issued by the city over the last three years. She did not respond. On Wednesday, September 17, FJN filed a formal Freedom of Information Act request, asking for copies of all dog-related citations issued over the last three years. Again, no response was received.Under Nebraska Public Records Law § 84-712, requires a response time of four business days. On Wednesday, September 24, FJN reached out to Fairbury Mayor Kelly Davis, who said he would speak to Fairbury Code Enforcement Officer Dan Lufkin about the request. The response from Lufkin, as relayed by Fairbury Mayor Kelly Davis via Facebook Messenger, was, "yes, I have a file with my copy of the citations I've issued, but he can gobto (sic) the court house on the 3rd floor and research all citations written, they are public record. Im (sic) not going to do his work for him." It is important to note that the Code Enforcement Officer's files are also public record and also subject to Nebraska's public records statutes.Later that same day, Reimer emailed FJN. She indicated she forwarded the records request to Lufkin and thought he had complied.As of press time, the records have not been received. The FOIA request was spurred by a recent dog attack in Fairbury that left three people injured, including a seven-year-old child.On Monday, September 8, 2025, at approximately 4:01 p.m. the Jefferson County 911 Center received a call in reference to two dogs that were seen attacking a small child in the 1500 block of H Street in Fairbury.According to Sheriff Nicholas Georgi, upon arrival it was found that a dog, unprovoked, had attacked a seven-year-old female while she was riding her bicycle, “A neighbor had witnessed the attack and immediately attempted to stop the attack. While the neighbor was attempting to get the dog off the child, another dog that belonged to the same owner started to bite the neighbor.” This comes after another dog attack, which led to a tort claim being filed against the City of Fairbury earlier this year.Caitlin Davis filed a claim on April 1, 2025, for $25,000, alleging negligence on the part of the city, after being bitten by a pit bull on April 2, 2024. According to the claim filed by her attorney, Barry Lake of Lincoln, the dog “had been designated as a dangerous dog by the City of Fairbury and the Jefferson County Sheriff on or about October 22, 2021.”The amount outlined in the court filing is “to compensate her for all personal physical injuries, medical expenses, lost wages and emotional stress.”

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