Re: 911:: Stupid People... and losing it

[Guest guest]

At 04:28 01/18/2002 -0500, that stalwart Tree I admire so much, wrote:

>Well, Mike, I can't say that I _ALWAYS_ manage. As a matter of

>fact, I just signed my latest counseling memo and letter of

>reprimand. What happened was...

<very big snip>

> I signed the counseling statement and

>accepted my LOR. I knew I lost it. The letter was rather mild

>and pleasant. Seems the boss listened to most of my night in

>her search for the calls where I violated department policy by

>failing to " be polite and courteous to all callers. "

The few times I " lose " it with callers are always those I KNOW immediately

will be problems for me later - because I was a problem for the [specific]

callers who were real problems for ME when I was doing a less-than-stellar

job dealing with their problem(s). I'm supposed to be above that, and I

normally am. But, like Tree: not always.

>I can't say 'always'. I'm just glad I didn't tell my caller

>exactly what I really thought of her and her midnight worries.

.....one of my dispatchers listened to a screaming man tell her he was

following a car full of teens that had just SHOT AT HIM in his car and she

blurted, " Sir, how smart is THAT?!?!?! " Despite our universal agreement

that it wasn't a very smart thing for the RP to do, she got counseled for

it. She's at the stage where she feels it was unwarranted; that stupid

callers need a wake-up smack upside the head.

Well, they don't. Damnit. Life just ain't fair, even for us care-givers.

>Let's see, I'm averaging two and a half years between those

>'losing it's.' Is that good? Bad? Average? Comments?

Tree, my personnel file has some interesting stuff in it. I'm guessing I

get in some sort of trouble about every 12-18 months. Usually, it's

because I forget that uniformed folks with bars on their lapels don't like

that Uppity Ms. Comm Sup pointing out their deficiencies in handling

non-uniformed Communications personnel or operational issues. The last one

was when the brass decided keeping my office desk and work area " tidier "

was a much higher priority than covering minimum staffing requirements.

And that tape requests were next on that list in priority. And monthly

activity reports followed behind that never-ending task. That I needed to

mandate more overtime to the 11 fully trained dispatchers who were already

working very hard to fill up a 17-dispatcher minimum schedule - because MY

work wasn't getting done by " helping out so much. "

Right. You got it. So we just don't answer those phones? Who do you

suggest I " mandate " to cover the two radios when we've already got

dispatchers working to the maximum number of hours beyond their shifts?

Should we drive to their homes and drag in the ones who are on their days

off after working four 13-hour days in a row?

My, that ruffled feathers. It wasn't as bad as the day about 3 years ago

when I agreed with a dispatcher that a particular officer was, indeed, an

asshole. Unfortunately, it was right after I hung up on him for treating a

dispatcher rather abruptly, and he complained to his rabbi, I mean, his

favorite LT. I don't lie when questioned. As a supervisor, I'm supposed

to present a better role model. Then the LT, when scuttling through my

office a day or two later, saw a note on my desk calendar, he challenged me

about it. He wondered what he'd caught me at; in one of the date squares,

I'd written " Violated no departmental policies today " Absolutely apropos

of nothing. Just an amusing little note to myself. But the explanation

that it was merely a joke - yet totally true - fell on unamused ears.

I am a smart ass, y'see.

And that tendency is what gets reflected in my personnel file every now and

then.

Ahhh well - any day employed in the career you love is better than the

alternative. The first time I got paper in my file that wasn't

positive, I was very, very upset with myself. Only myself to blame. The

stuff that's been added to it is still a direct result of my inability to

maintain the utmost professionalism - and remember to keep my mouth shut.

Wouldn't we all like to be nearly perfect???

Happy to be here, proud to serve.

Olmstead

Communications Supervisor

~on the Central California coastline~

" Not presumed to be an official statement of my employing agency. "

Home E-mail: mailto:gryeyes@...

http://www.gryeyes.com/

[Guest guest]

On Jan. 19, 2002 at 10:03pm, Olmstead <gryeyes@r...> wrote:

<big snip>

<<I'm supposed to be above that, and I normally am. But, like Tree:

not always.>>

<big snip>

<<my personnel file has some interesting stuff in it. I'm guessing I

get in some sort of trouble about every 12-18 months. Usually, it's

because I forget that uniformed folks with bars on their lapels don't

like that Uppity Ms. Comm Sup pointing out their deficiencies in

handling non-uniformed Communications personnel or operational

issues.>>

<snip time again>

<<I am a smart ass, y'see. And that tendency is what gets reflected in

my personnel file every now and then.>>

, your post speak volumes on what kind of supervisor you are ~

one that stands up for her employees. They are d*** lucky and

(hopefully) they realize it. Each and every one of us on this list has

had (at one point in our life/career) a supervisor that wouldn't go to

bat for his/her employees. If you haven't had that experience, you

either haven't been " in the biz " long or you are truly blessed

('s employees seem to be in the latter catagory ).

Keep up the good work, ~you're an inspiration to not only your

employees , but to those of us on the list as well.

Riley

PD Northbrook IL

~On Chicago's North Shore~

" 9-1-1 - a number we'll always remember "

" 9-11 (2001) - a date we'll never forget "

P.S. ~ , it's good to see your " medically mandated siesta "

recharged your can of " smart a** "

[Guest guest]

Here is a twist I bet you don't here often

After taking a call on a 2 veh non injury accident I had dispatched a trooper

to the scene. I continued to receive calls from a witness wanting a trooper.

Assuring the caller that he was enrt but would be a while as he was the only

one for the county that shift he was covering the largst county in this state

by himself.(No I did not give her the details and remained professional.

Ironically I took a phone call from our Prosecuting Attorney at just the

right time and he got an ear full from me as I could freely vent to this man.

His word were tell the Trooper to Arrest her for Harrasing phone calls to me

if it did not stop. AND YES HE WAS SERIOUS. No the lady calmed down before

he arrived and we never tested the waters so to say.

P46

[Guest guest]

1. I disagree totally with you, Jim....Tree was not out of line, in fact as

a PBA rep, if this happened at my agency I would fight the LOR for any of my

people.

2. If I had taken this call, I not only probably would have handled it

exactly the same way, I would have added that several OTHER people might die

if she kept tying me up unnecessarily. I also likely would have threatened

to charge her with harrassment and police interference if she didn't either

take responsibility for what she wanted me to do or leave me alone!

3. For the record, we don't have an official policy regarding welfare

checks, they are handled on a case-by-case basis. Basically, I tell people

that it is not against the law to refuse to answer one's phone, and it's a

good thing because I do it all the time. We will only go if there is a

VALID reason, and it better be good. Also, we usually will only knock on

the door and if no one answers, that's it unless there is reason to believe

there is a problem. For example, medical history or some other verifiable

threat. The decision to force entry or not is made by the patrol supervisor

who must respond to the scene. Also, if the complaintant is local, they are

usually required to respond to the scene and take responsibility for the

damage, or else give us permission on a taped line. Pretty much, Tree did

what we do. Do I think you were rude? Maybe a little, but not out of line

considering the " totality of the circumstances " . As I said, Kim the PBA rep

would fight it for you, and at my agency, I'd have at least a 50-50 chance

of winning.

Kim

> I guess I'll be the voice of opposition here... You simply lost your

cool. You were out of line when you said " " " If you're that concerned, tell

me that you consider this an emergency and we'll be happy to go over

> and tear your mother's door off its hinges to see if she's there and if

she is, if she's alive or dead. If you called us at 1 or 2 or 3 or anytime

before 9 o'clock at night, we would have been happy to check on your mother.

But at this hour, unless you declare it an emergency, we are not going to go

> banging on your mother's door just because you failed to call us at a

reasonable hour. Now, is this an emergency? " " "

> First of all, to the caller it IS a reasonable hour to be concerned. I

also disagree with a policy that basically says that people are ok after

2100. But as dispatchers we don't get to make policy so oh well.

> You also acted unprofessionally when you said " " " Look, lady. She might

have been hurt at 1 or 2 or 3 o'clock or even four, five, six, seven, eight

or nine. For all I know, she started bleeding at one and died at eight

because you didn't bother to call anyone to help her until midnight. If you

had been worried enough to call earlier, you would already know. But,

whether your mother is dead or alive or

> sick or hurt, unless you are willing to take responsibility for our

forcing entry to her home at this hour of the night, you are either going

to have to check on her yourself or wait

> until morning. " " "

>

> I guarantee that if mom had been found dead in the morning that policy

would no longer exist. I don't fault you for following policy but the

things you said were uncalled for. Regardless of how a caller is acting.

We can raise our voice and sound stern to take control of the call but some

of the things you said were just rude and condescending. If she's becoming

a nuisance caller send an officer out to talk with her.

>

> Jim

> Mr 911

> TriCom

[Guest guest]

*****

<snip> if I were to try to call

>LAPD to check on my mom they would probably tell me to drive my butt down

>there and check on her myself <snip>

****

Now now, an LAPD dispatcher wouldn't do that! We would transfer you to the

station, tell you to ask for a welfare check, and the officer would tell you

to drive your butt down there yourself! (grin) Welcome Sara and Robyn,

I've been dispatching (for LAPD) for 13+ years and I'm an oldie here (now

that's scary!).

Terin

_________________________________________________________________

MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos:

http://photos.msn.com/support/worldwide.aspx

[Guest guest]

No, I was not on that one show that actually showed us dispatching, however,

you have heard my voice on them. My voice was also on a " Murder, She Wrote "

movie that came out several years ago. My friend happened to hear it and

gave me a copy. Sure enough, I remembered the night.

Terin (LAPD)

_________________________________________________________________

Chat with friends online, try MSN Messenger: http://messenger.msn.com

[Guest guest]

Oh, and I'm sure it's been mentioned here before, the " voice " on Adam-12 was

an LAPD dispatcher (actually RTO - Radiotelephone Operator), Shaaron

Claridge, who has since retired.

hm

Re: 911:: Stupid People... and losing it

> No, I was not on that one show that actually showed us dispatching,

however,

> you have heard my voice on them. My voice was also on a " Murder, She

Wrote "

> movie that came out several years ago. My friend happened to hear it and

> gave me a copy. Sure enough, I remembered the night.

>

> Terin (LAPD)

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 1/18/02 4:31:06 AM Eastern Standard Time,

treeg@... writes:

> Midnight, Saturday night, got a call from a woman a few miles

> south of Falls Church saying that she was worried about her

> elderly (to her, elderly was only a couple years older than

> me).

I have a question. We also get these type of calls, of course, however one

of the first questions we ask is: " Where are you and why cant you go over

there? "

If she was only a few miles south of Falls Church, wouldnt she have been able

to go herself if she was that concerned?

(ps: I think that after a while we could have threatened her with abuse of

9-1-1 to make her stop!!)

Toni Wyman, (CTO and Tactical Dispatcher)

Gwinnett County Police, GA (just N of HotLanta)

Lawrenceville, GA

(These are only my opinions, not my agency's, after all they are the

government and they have opinions of their own)

For liability reasons my posts and opinions are to be reprinted with my

permission only.

Email to: E911GAL136@...

[Guest guest]

<< She just kept calling, again and again, weeping, whailing, " What if she's

hurt? What if she's dead? " >>

At some point a person needs to have SOME personal responsbility. The number

of times she called made me wonder if something else was going on -- like did

she have a fight with mom and mom just had enough of her daughter's crap or

something similar?

<<< " Look, lady. You said you've been calling since noon. I explained

our policy. If you're that concerned, tell me that you consider this an

emergency and we'll be happy to go over and tear your mother's door off its

hinges to see if she's there and if she is, if she's alive or dead. If you

called us at 1 or 2 or 3 or anytime before 9 o'clock at night, we would

have been happy to check on your mother. But at this hour, unless you

declare it an emergency, we are not going to go banging on your mother's

door just because you failed to call us at a reasonable hour. Now, is this

an emergency? Do you really want us to check on your mother? " >>>

The written transcription doesn't sound bad at all......especially after HOW

many calls?

<<< If you had been worried enough to call earlier, you would already

know. >

But then she would have had to take on some responsbility for her mother,

been a real grown up instead of putting it on you.

<<<Seems the boss listened to most of my night in her search for the calls

where I violated department policy by failing to " be polite and courteous to

all callers. " >

Did he happen to work for a certain California agency at some point?

[Guest guest]

Betty

<< We do NOT get involved in these, but refer them back to their attorney

to go back to court and address the issue. We have had a few parents that

just won't go

away and continue to demand that we respond to the offending parents house

and rip the kids out for their scheduled visitation. How do you guys handle

something like this? Any departments out there that enforce these civil >>

We handle exchanges.....and have had a few fights break out.......like last

week when the irate father made a move towards me when I was out front and

yelled at me that I saw and heard all this -- I think he thought I thought

him moving towards me was favorable......I also saw him grab his x in front

of the kids.

We go out to the house or wherever if we're asked. Its part of the community

policing and better we go and handle it than to have a more serious situation

erupt never know when the other parent will react violently then you have a

worse situation on hand.

[Guest guest]

Had a caller the other nite -- on a cell phone so she was yelling and didn't

have a clue where she was. She was yelling because a dog growled at her dog

and her dog growled and she wanted the guy and his dog picked up and

arrested. I kept trying to get her to tell me where she was -- can't send

someone without a location you know. She told me if I had sent an officer

the second she demanded one (yes she said demanded) we would have had the guy

in custody by now ...... this was 2 minutes into the call at most. I told

her we couldn't send someone if we didn't' know where to go -- she wanted me

name -- and I told her and reminded her I gave it when I answered the phone.

She demanded my supervisor and I was more than happy to put her through --

she was yelling so much. Well my Sgt. got on the phone and before she could

take off on him as well he told her that I had a right to ask where she was

and I wasn't an officer so I couldn't quote the law to her, especially one

that we didn't regularly have come up. TOTALLY took my side and pacified her

in the process. What a refreshing change!

He's a totally great Sgt. One of the frequent fliers who's been

decompensating mentally called, again, last night. She went off on the call

taker, a unit rolled and she went off on him the second he arrived - he

didn't even open his mouth and she was yelling at him about something and

that he should leave so he left.......she called, went off on another

calltaker and was put right into our Sgt.......who said we'd send another

officer.....called in the first one and supported him and both call takers.

Sooooo refreshing!!!!!!

No paper taken, no nastiness -- he's so great.....appeases the caller, even

the unbalanced ones and supports his staff.

[Guest guest]

><< We do NOT get involved in these, but refer them back to their attorney

>to go back to court and address the issue. We have had a few parents that

>just won't go

> away and continue to demand that we respond to the offending parents

>house

> and rip the kids out for their scheduled visitation. How do you guys

>handle

> something like this? Any departments out there that enforce these civil

> >>

We do standby's also. We will go to their house but we ALWAYS suggest they

come to the station as it is a neutral place. I've had one couple get in to

a knock-down-drag-out fight in the lobby. I always have at least 1 officer

in the station when this is going on and on this particular call had to call

in 2 others. This visitation didn't go on as planned as both parents were

arrested, domestic battery and battery to a police officer and DCFS took the

kids. I'm a divorced parent and know first hand that exchanges can get

emotional.

my 2 cents, uumm maybe just one, I'll be broke LOL

Terri

Rantoul IL PD

_________________________________________________________________

Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp.