Saying this 911 operator should be retrained would be an understatement!

**mam2009** · March-05-10, 01:47 PM

If you listen to this and have children, it is difficult to hold back tears of not only sadness but intense ANGER!

http://www.clickondetroit.com/video/22753023/index.html

**Blueidone** · March-05-10, 02:06 PM

I totally agree. I understand they get a lot of bogus calls, but this poor little girl was in major distress. The operator's disgust or frustration or whatever really came through. It seems as though she wasn't even listening to what the child was saying.

**Maof** · March-05-10, 02:09 PM

couldn't they have just traced the call. the operator sends her outside to check the address!? i would have been concerned if the killer/killers were still there! although they weren't, it really was a stupid thing to tell that poor child.

Buy American · March-05-10, 02:29 PM

What is wrong with you people? I see absolutely nothing unprofessional from this 911 operator. The operator is the one who HAS to remain calm in this type of situation, she was neither indifferent nor was she rude.

Talk about frustration...this operator is trying desperately to get an address, a number, something from this poor child and the child is unable for many minutes to find something indicating an address. The operator is telling her "I can't help you until you help me"....the child had to have called from a cell phone because there is Enhanced 911 in Detroit.

No child should have to go through what this poor baby was put through. Violence is common in Detroit, these 911 operators put up with lots of $hit from the public....give this one a break...she did her job.

**mam2009** · March-05-10, 02:44 PM

Originally Posted by Buy American

What is wrong with you people? I see absolutely nothing unprofessional from this 911 operator. The operator is the one who HAS to remain calm in this type of situation, she was neither indifferent nor was she rude.

Talk about frustration...this operator is trying desperately to get an address, a number, something from this poor child and the child is unable for many minutes to find something indicating an address. The operator is telling her "I can't help you until you help me"....the child had to have called from a cell phone because there is Enhanced 911 in Detroit.

No child should have to go through what this poor baby was put through. Violence is common in Detroit, these 911 operators put up with lots of $hit from the public....give this one a break...she did her job.

The operator did her job, but she could have coached that child in a child-friendly manner much earlier on how and where to find the address. The girl had clearly gone outside earlier in the conversation which is when the operator could have taken the opportunity to coach her about where to look for the address, but when she was outside the first time, she was asking the girl to look on the table and the dresser [[WTF!)...which then led to her questioning about whether she lived there or not, etc. I won't go as far as to say that she should be fired but she needs to be retrained and have a competent supervisor [[or 911 operator expert) listening in on her calls for the next six weeks. She had at LEAST two opportunities to guide that child to telling her the correct address well before the nearly 5 and a half minute mark. She didn't even ask what had happened to the mom and dad until the end of the portion that is on the WDIV website and the girl mentioned a few times that her mom was "almost dead"!!!!!!!!! Our City and this child deserve far better and we should NOT be excusing or giving anyone a pass in this city anymore. PERIOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Retroit · March-05-10, 03:02 PM

Let this serve as a "teachable moment". Parents, teach your children who to call and what to say if, God forbid, something bad happens. Teach them their address [[write down the address and post in a conspicuous place), teach them how to escape from their house if it catches fire, teach them what to do if they are accosted by a strangers, etc.

And 911 operators and administrators, think of a simpler way of obtaining vital information from a child.

**kryptonite** · March-05-10, 03:06 PM

I listened to the recording and I felt that the operator drug the whole process out too long. It seems to me that she asked the girl too many questions, some were completely irrelevant and early on the girl had made it clear that the mother was dying. Does 911 need to even have an address? I thought that they upgraded years ago to technology that would allow them to geoposition a call from either a hard-wired phone or a cordless or cellular.

Based on the way the operator acted I halfway expected her to tell the girl to call back in fifteen minutes she was going on her break. She didn't seem to emote any sense of emergency.

**Meddle** · March-05-10, 04:12 PM

If this was a cell phone call it may not have shown Phase 2 information which would GeoLocate the transmission. It may have only shown the cell tower location which is very, very common. Even if it were a landline, the address may not have been displayed. This happens often also when the phone isn't actually in service. Disconnected phone lines can still dial 911, but don't always have an address of record attached.

The bit about looking around on tables and dressers and desks is taught to 911 operators when dealing with kids. You're trying to get them to find a piece of mail with an address on it.

Buy American · March-05-10, 05:35 PM

The 911 operator is supposed to ask questions. The more answers she gets the easier it is to know if police, fire, or both are required. What some of you deem unfriendly or harsh comes with the territory. The little girl didn't live in that home, it was the boyfriends' house. It breaks my heart to listen to that child...she went through a lot that night, but don't blame the dispatcher...blame the killer of Mom and Dad.

**Jimaz** · March-05-10, 07:16 PM

Here's a a link to the story.

**MaxDetroit** · March-05-10, 07:28 PM

She was definitely sarcastic at one point in the conversation which, knowing all the details as we do now, comes across as cold and unprofessional. What I think happens is these operators are bombarded daily with kids playing around on the phone. They probably get hundreds of fake reports for every one that's legitimate and they become jaded by that. As an EMS operator you can't let that happen but it's human nature. The child was sweet, poised, totally incredible under the circumstances. I hope she gets enough counseling to deal with this disaster.

**R8RBOB** · March-05-10, 08:21 PM

Since the mother and the girls did not live in the house, it is understandable why the 911 operator and the little girl had their moment of confusion. I was ready to put blame on the mother for not teaching her daughter her own address since I knew my address at age 6. I can understand the lady frustration with trying to get information from the little girl. The girl had no idea. The 911 operator is old school when grown-ups didn't lower themselves to the level of a child.

**downtown_racine** · March-05-10, 10:21 PM

The 911 call is tragic, as much as I like cell phones I guess I never really realized this major downside as far as being easy to locate. Seemed like in my town when you would call nineeleven on a land line the address comes right up too.
I can understand the operators frustration to a point and find it to be so sad that a child an innocent victim is put through something like this.

And the perp, this mutt released from prison 5 weeks ago cant keep his nose clean for 2 freakin months and now he is the suspect in a double slaying. Disgusting, he should have never been on the street.
I wonder if the male victim was the bio dad ?

Buy American · March-05-10, 10:23 PM

^^^...and he'll probably see the streets again!

**Brittz** · March-05-10, 11:13 PM

I told my grandson [[14) how is it that 3 year olds can call for help and people listen but when an older child calls with a need for help he is chastised. Detroit 911 operators need new training ASAP!

**Enduro** · March-05-10, 11:24 PM

One of the saddest things I've ever heard.

Buy American · March-06-10, 08:55 AM

Originally Posted by Brittz

I told my grandson [[14) how is it that 3 year olds can call for help and people listen but when an older child calls with a need for help he is chastised. Detroit 911 operators need new training ASAP!

Unfortunately, it's the older kids that play the pranks on 911 that harden some of the operators and make them more cautious. This 911 operator, however harsh or rude some of you think she was, did her job to the best of her ability with what she had to work with. The poor little girl was traumatized, didn't know where she was, certainly didn't know the address, was trying to get her mother to respond...she couldn't give 911 the proper information needed to get help immediately. It's a sad situation; but to blame the operator, say she needs "retraining", is wrong. I certainly hope that Warren Evans does not reprimand her...she actually did her job by getting the proper address from the poor child and got help there as soon as she could. The child's parents were beyond help, and there lies the problem....the killer will get more "benefit of the doubt", will have more "rights" than some of you are giving this 911 operator.

Bullet · March-06-10, 09:55 AM

I was in tears after listening to that tape...

**pffft** · March-06-10, 10:29 AM

Buy American,

Sorry but I disagree. No matter how many times 911 operators are prank-called, they are supposed to be trained professionals, and ready to deal with not only traumatized people, but children who may have trouble because of their extreme youth, in expressing themselves.

Do you or I get to be rude to the public in our jobs, because we've gotten too many annoying calls?

I don't care if the operator had to deal with a dozen bratty callers or got up on the wrong side of the bed that morning, or had her husband yell at her. She is an adult, and supposed to be a professional. With something as vital as 911 service, they must always presume they're dealing with a real emergency.

Buy American · March-06-10, 12:46 PM

Originally Posted by pffft

Buy American,

Sorry but I disagree. No matter how many times 911 operators are prank-called, they are supposed to be trained professionals, and ready to deal with not only traumatized people, but children who may have trouble because of their extreme youth, in expressing themselves.

Do you or I get to be rude to the public in our jobs, because we've gotten too many annoying calls?

I don't care if the operator had to deal with a dozen bratty callers or got up on the wrong side of the bed that morning, or had her husband yell at her. She is an adult, and supposed to be a professional. With something as vital as 911 service, they must always presume they're dealing with a real emergency.

pffft...I guess we will have to agree to disagree. If you listen to the call, I can see where some may think she is unprofessional, disinterested or rude to the child. I have first hand knowledge of what these operators go through on a daily basis, especially ones in Detroit. If they were able to give you the statistics, I would not hesitate to guess that 75% - 90% of the young children or teens who call, are pranking the operator. You have to remember, with each one of these pranks, another call goes unanswered that may be righteous. The 911 operator has to make quick, precise decisions, and she/he absolutely has to get as much information as possible, very quickly. She is highly trained before she gets to the radio. She is monitored 100% of the time before she is left alone to decide how to handle a call...and even then, there is a supervisor right there to either take over if she is being overwhelmed or "gets rude".

This is not the answer that most people want to hear, but they do not have time to coddle the children....they need information now, and sometimes it's not easy to listen to. Also, remember this one very important thing...before EMS can be sent to a scene that involves a shooting or some sort of violence, the police have to be sent to secure the scene. There are many variables in a scenario and she has very little time to make decisions. I don't hear in that call that the operator was not taking this serious....she tried for many minutes to get an address from the child. The child did not know where she was and there is the tragic part. Also, the operator asked the child at the beginning if there was anyone else in the house and the child responded "no". Later in the conversation, another child was heard and the operator said something to the effect that "who else is in the house, you told me no one else was there". The child said it was her sister, the operator said "how old is your sister?", and the child responded "six". I'm sure the operator 1) thought maybe someone older was there who could be more help, and 2) wanted to make sure the scene would be a safe one for the police and paramedics to enter into.

I remember one time when I was a teenager in Detroit. Someone in my family got very sick and I called the Police [[at that time, there was no 911). The person on the other end was asking endless questions, what is your address, what is the main cross street, is the person breathing, where are they, what happened.....and all that time, I am getting angrier and angrier, yelling at him to just send help; but they were sending help when I gave the address at the beginning of the call. The operator was now trying to get more information to pass on to the Fire Department and Police to help me more.

Yes, sometimes I had to be what you may consider "rude" to the public when I was on my job. My job was in some way the same capacity as this 911 operator, EMERGENCY, and when people, whether young or old are in fear, hysterical or irrational...sometimes the only way to calm them down is a "slap in the face" type of attitude. I am saying "slap in the face" metaphorically.

Retroit · March-06-10, 01:27 PM

Buy American, you raise some very good points. I think 911 operators should be trained to tell the caller that emergency personnel are on the way once an address is obtained, because the questions they ask are very annoying to the caller who is not aware that help is on the way.

I also think they need to punish the children who make prank calls, and/or their parents. Even a cell phone provides a caller ID which the police can trace to the owner.

**Meddle** · March-06-10, 01:46 PM

Even a cell phone provides a caller ID which the police can trace to the owner.

That's not always true. Prepaid cell phones like Net10 and TracFone don't always have registered owners. Cell phones are lost and stolen all the time or sold for $10 on the street. There isn't always a way to know who has a phone at any moment. I have 2 old phones that have not been active for many years [[at least 5 years) and are no longer registered to me, yet if I dial 911 from either one, the call will connect. Those [[inactive) phones can also be donated to battered women's shelters and given out or loaned out at will more than once with no record of who has them.

Retroit · March-06-10, 01:50 PM

Good point.

**Thames** · March-06-10, 07:25 PM

The tape itself is just so upsetting. Heartbreaking. As I listened to it, my emotions were running higher and higher. That is exactly what a dispatcher cannot do.

The dispatcher was firm, but I don't think she was uncaring.

We have the luxury of looking back on the event and second guessing. The dispatcher was in the here and now.

She has an eight year-old telling her that her "father" is dead [[not the bio) and her mother is dying. The little girl can't give an address of where she is, which led to confusion. The dispatcher assumed [[it seems), as some of us did here, that the girl was at home and just didn't know her address.

It was a horrific situation, I do not fault the dispatcher. She managed to keep that child calm enough to get the info she needed so she could send help.

**redfordman** · March-07-10, 01:21 PM

Originally Posted by Buy American

What is wrong with you people? I see absolutely nothing unprofessional from this 911 operator. The operator is the one who HAS to remain calm in this type of situation, she was neither indifferent nor was she rude.

Talk about frustration...this operator is trying desperately to get an address, a number, something from this poor child and the child is unable for many minutes to find something indicating an address. The operator is telling her "I can't help you until you help me"....the child had to have called from a cell phone because there is Enhanced 911 in Detroit.

No child should have to go through what this poor baby was put through. Violence is common in Detroit, these 911 operators put up with lots of $hit from the public....give this one a break...she did her job.

Agreed! Nothing wrong with the operator! She was trying to help!