|
|
|
A Steuben County 911 dispatcher is on administrative leave after allegedly hanging up three times on a distraught mother nearly two weeks ago.
County 911 Director David Hopkins said the unidentified dispatcher was argumentative with the caller, Diana Cassidy, of Perry, and later suggested a tow truck on the scene leave because the woman was being difficult. The dispatcher is now on leave while county officials review the situation, he said.
“My hand is up and my head is down,” Hopkins said. “It happened, it shouldn’t have happened and we are reviewing it right now.”
Hopkins said Perry first called 911 around 6 p.m. Aug. 18 from Wayland. Perry was upset because she had accidentally locked the car doors in 80-degree weather, with the keys and a 1-year-old inside.
Hopkins said the dispatcher first tried to locate Wayland’s officer in charge, who was off duty and at the Steuben County Fair — a trip of at least 20 minutes. County deputies also were too far away to quickly reach the woman, he said.
When the dispatcher suggested a tow truck, Cassidy said she didn’t have a lot of cash. The dispatcher told her some tow truck operators provided the service free if a child is inside, Hopkins said.
When the Woods Collision tow truck operator arrived and said there was a charge, Cassidy reportedly became agitated, apparently believing she had to pay $75 before the door was opened. She called 911 again.
Hopkins said a second dispatcher took the call, argued with Cassidy and hung up. When the mother called back, the same dispatcher told her she was abusing the 911 system and disconnected. When Cassidy called a third time, the dispatcher disconnected again.
The second dispatcher then called the Woods Collision employee and suggested he leave, Hopkins said.
“While that (911 argument) was going on, my employee called me, asked me what to do,” Woods Collision owner Mike Merrill said. “He told me the windows were down an inch or so, so he just got the bar in and opened the car and he left. It maybe took all of 10 minutes.”
Merrill said he typically charges a standard $20-$25 to open a locked vehicle.
“And we don’t charge it until after it gets opened,” he said. “She could have written a check or sent it to us. Most people just drive away, anyway.”
Hopkins said 911 dispatchers have been told since then they should not suggest any business will provide a service free under any circumstance.
A Steuben County 911 dispatcher is on administrative leave after allegedly hanging up three times on a distraught mother nearly two weeks ago.
County 911 Director David Hopkins said the unidentified dispatcher was argumentative with the caller, Diana Cassidy, of Perry, and later suggested a tow truck on the scene leave because the woman was being difficult. The dispatcher is now on leave while county officials review the situation, he said.
“My hand is up and my head is down,” Hopkins said. “It happened, it shouldn’t have happened and we are reviewing it right now.”
Hopkins said Perry first called 911 around 6 p.m. Aug. 18 from Wayland. Perry was upset because she had accidentally locked the car doors in 80-degree weather, with the keys and a 1-year-old inside.
Hopkins said the dispatcher first tried to locate Wayland’s officer in charge, who was off duty and at the Steuben County Fair — a trip of at least 20 minutes. County deputies also were too far away to quickly reach the woman, he said.
When the dispatcher suggested a tow truck, Cassidy said she didn’t have a lot of cash. The dispatcher told her some tow truck operators provided the service free if a child is inside, Hopkins said.
When the Woods Collision tow truck operator arrived and said there was a charge, Cassidy reportedly became agitated, apparently believing she had to pay $75 before the door was opened. She called 911 again.
Hopkins said a second dispatcher took the call, argued with Cassidy and hung up. When the mother called back, the same dispatcher told her she was abusing the 911 system and disconnected. When Cassidy called a third time, the dispatcher disconnected again.
The second dispatcher then called the Woods Collision employee and suggested he leave, Hopkins said.
“While that (911 argument) was going on, my employee called me, asked me what to do,” Woods Collision owner Mike Merrill said. “He told me the windows were down an inch or so, so he just got the bar in and opened the car and he left. It maybe took all of 10 minutes.”
Merrill said he typically charges a standard $20-$25 to open a locked vehicle.
“And we don’t charge it until after it gets opened,” he said. “She could have written a check or sent it to us. Most people just drive away, anyway.”
Hopkins said 911 dispatchers have been told since then they should not suggest any business will provide a service free under any circumstance.
“They mean well, but it really isn’t our place to say that,” he said.
The second dispatcher also should not have been rude and dismissive to Cassidy, Hopkins said.
But Hopkins said his largest concern is “a dispatcher should never hang up on a caller, ever. It’s never done. No excuses.”
Hopkins said the suspended dispatcher has several years of experience in the 911 Center.
“Why it happened, I don’t know,” he said. “I don’t really care. You have a less than satisfied director here. This should not have happened under any circumstance.”
The matter has been turned over to the county Personnel Officer Nancy Smith, county Attorney Alan Reed and county Administrator Mark Alger, Hopkins said.
Reed said two important issues arose out of the incident.
“The first was there was a child locked in a car,” he said. “From our point of view, that was handled correctly. There was no law enforcement in the immediate area, so the dispatcher did the next best thing and called a tow truck that was nearby. The second issue is the aftermath, what happened after the tow truck was called. That calls for very close scrutiny.”
Reed said county officials are reviewing the incident as a public safety issue, and also to be sure the allegations against the suspended dispatcher are correct.
Disciplinary action by the county is governed by the state Civil Service laws and the CSEA contract, and conducted under Open Meetings laws, he said. Open Meetings guidelines allow officials to meet behind closed doors to discuss the “promotion, demotion, discipline, suspension, dismissal or removal of a particular person.”
Hopkins said he hopes a decision on the employee’s future will be made in the next few days.
Cassidy could not be located for comment.
