911 Fails: Woman killed in police parking lot

[Old Timer]

BillCA said:

Old Timer... my ten-code is rusty, but we use to use 10-50 for taking reports.

Sorry. I still lapse into "jargon mode" on occasion, even after 18 years as a civilian.

This is another example of how the 911 system often screws up with dispatchers not clearly comprehending what you are saying. I've found a few in California who don't even know what a "211" (armed robbery) is. (this is likely when they take calls but don't communicate with patrol officers directly).

Exactly! The person taking the 911 call is, at least here, usually a deputy, often on light duty. But after taking the call the info is sent to the dispatcher who is a civilian employee of the county. And it is at that transition point that information is lost.

My worst nightmare is being on the line to 911, asking for assistance because an intruder/assailant surrendered at gunpoint and describing myself to them so officers know who the GG is... only to have them put that information down as the suspect/perpetrator!

Yeah! <Shudder> I have had nightmares about such things, especially in a county of 3,000,000 people, with 71 agencies, and over 11,000 sworn personnel. It is impossible to know even a small portion of the other peace officers by sight. Time for the badge on the chain around your neck and yelling at the top of your lungs, "Peace Officer! Peace Officer!"

 

[sholling]

The fact that she didn't arm herself while living in a Shall Issue state is symptomatic of a societal problem,

In some cases it's a choice. Do I feed the kids this week or do I spend $600 on a pistol, ammo, and learning how to use it? For many who don't perceive an immediate threat feeding the family takes priority. Yes she should have owned a gun but before being too hard just keep in mind that $600 is a lot of meals.

That right there is problematic for all cell phones.

While this is a terrible tragedy, neither the 911 operator nor the police are at fault here.

I can't buy into that. The 911 operator had a history of attitude problems with callers. The victim explained where she was going yet the 911 operator refused to forward information until her online form was complete including an address. Even though the victim gave her best description of her location and her destination the operator demanded an address before continuing. The aftermath was SOP 'the operator did nothing wrong case closed'. Sorry but the operator needed to be fired and the chief bumped back to writing parking violations for not removing a problem operator before somebody got killed.

 

[4thHorseman]

I have always thought that if you were not allowed to carry concealed to defend yourself, and had to rely on the cops to defend you, that if you were mugged you should be able to sue the cops for not being there to defend you...ah, but atlas, not the case.