E911 prank call, I thought...

[LMTC]

Here in East Texas when you call 911 from a cell phone, they put a lock on that cell phone so you cannot make any calls out to another number. I don't know about if you were to try and call 911 again if it would work or not. Then after the officer arrives and deals with the cituation the hold is released and the phone goes back to working as normal. This has happened twice to my cell phone.

Once again a stupid .gov solution. Anyone wanting to make a fake call, whether for diversion or malice or whatever, can buy a $30 throw-away cell and drop it after the call. For that matter, ANY cell, activated or not, is required to complete 911 calls, so a person could use a deactivated phone, an old phone, whatever. The only people hurt by "locking" the phone are the rest of us who try to do things right.

 

[Ken45101]

Where have all the good cops gone? I respected the heck out of the officers I knew growing up. Today they all appear to be ex military types who think they are still a war.

We were discussing that on another list. Respect for police seems to have disappeared in the 60's and 70's. Drugs, Viet Nam war protests, Democratic National Convention in Chicago....

That said, I know there are still many fine law enforcement officers. But there are also "goons with guns and badges" out there.

However, I also remember my mom talking about the police busting up labor strikes in the 30's and 40's with their billy clubs.

So I guess there have always been good cops and bad cops. But I think today there is more aggressive "tough guy" training.

Ken

 

[MikePA]

Would be a good practice to ask for identification of the person making the call.

And if the person chooses to remain anonymous? With E911 they know the address of the phone or nearest cell tower. The point of all this, as was already stated, they have to investigate whether people find it troubling or not.

But I think today there is more aggressive "tough guy" training.

I couldn't disagree more. With dash cams and almost everyone having a cell phone with cameras, both still and video, resulting in documentation of any misdeed, 'tough guys' wouldn't and don't last long. It's also sad to read the bitterness against all police officers because of a few bad apples.and

 

[2manyrocks]

If someone is not willing to leave their name, then I'm a bit more skeptical that the police should go out without asking the caller quite a bit more to (a) verify that it's a real call and (b) get as many facts as possible so they go prepared.

This could have gone very badly if Mike had gone to the door with his .357 and there are two policemen in body armor whose daily profession requires them to be proficient in their use of arms.

I'm waiting for Bird to comment on what he thinks.

 

[MikePA]

If someone is not willing to leave their name, then I'm a bit more skeptical that the police should go out without asking the caller quite a bit more to (a) verify that it's a real call and (b) get as many facts as possible so they go prepared.

What? Someone working in the 911 center is supposed to interrogate the caller, determine if it's a 'real' call then decide whether to actually dispatch a police officer? What objective criteria are they supposed to use to determine if the call is 'real'? Would you want to be the person determining this and if you're wrong, someone dies?:confused2:

 

[Ken45101]

What? Someone working in the 911 center is supposed to interrogate the caller, determine if it's a 'real' call then decide whether to actually dispatch a police officer? What objective criteria are they supposed to use to determine if the call is 'real'? Would you want to be the person determining this and if you're wrong, someone dies?:confused2:

You are correct. About ten years ago, a Cincinnati 911 dispatcher didn't believe the caller who said that two policemen had been shot. By the time a car was sent to investigate, 45 minutes later, both officers were dead.

I couldn't disagree more. With dash cams and almost everyone having a cell phone with cameras, both still and video, resulting in documentation of any misdeed, 'tough guys' wouldn't and don't last long. It's also sad to read the bitterness against all police officers because of a few bad apples.

There is a difference between what police management would call a "misdeed" and the aggressive, intimidation style that police are being trained to use.

Ken

 

[2manyrocks]

Yes, I believe officers better have a more substantial basis other than "somebody, somewhere, placed a 911 call to your house" before they go out and come into your house-especially the come into your house part.

The fourth amendment requires a warrant for entry. The police may get around it if someone in the house gives consent to entry or if the facts objectively show that someone was at imminent risk if they didn't go in immediately. Like this case: http://www.michbar.org/opinions/district/2006/081006/32841.pdf

But it takes more than some vague 911 call from an unknown caller.

 

[dmccarty]

911 hang up calls are received frequently. If there is an emergency situation and the victim calls out on a land line or cell the attacker often terminates the call. Termination includes killing the caller.

Dispatchers try to get as much information from a caller as they possibly can but if the call is terminated or the person refuses to answer there is not much that can be done.

There was a situation here a few months back where the husband killed the wife and kid(s). A 911 call was made but terminated. An officer went to the house but did not hear or see anything. Since he had no reasonable suspicion there was not much he could do but leave. The bodies were found later.

The last I heard there was going to be a lawsuit.

Later,
Dan

 

[LMTC]

You are correct. About ten years ago, a Cincinnati 911 dispatcher didn't believe the caller who said that two policemen had been shot. By the time a car was sent to investigate, 45 minutes later, both officers were dead.



There is a difference between what police management would call a "misdeed" and the aggressive, intimidation style that police are being trained to use.

Ken

WAAAAY more to that story. Both policemen were shot in the head at close range, and per the autopsy report had essentially no chance of survival even with immediate medical treatment. There was miscommunication among several people rather than a 911 operator simply refusing to believe a caller...the alleged perp allegedly committed suicide three blocks away just a few minutes later. Both dispatchers and responding police confused the reports of the shootings and for nearly 45 minutes believed all the calls they got were actually about the alleged suicide. If you are familiar with the situation then you know there were many nuances, some still unexplained, to that incident. Probably not a great example for the issue in this thread.

 

[Ken45101]

Yes, there were a lot more details, but the 911 tape clearly showed that the 911 operator did not believe the caller. As I recall, she came right out and told the caller that she didn't believe him, and then delayed handling the call. Everything else you point out happened later and was used to try to cover up the original error.

The only thing notable about that incident was that it was police officers who were killed. Cincinnati 911 had a long history of horrible handling of "civilian" calls for emergencies. I don't know if they have improved it lately since I don't hear Cincinnati news any more.

But this is germane to the thread here because it shows what happens when a 911 operator decides that a call "isn't good enough".