Mom Dies After Boy's 911 Call Considered Prank

[2luvmy]

Yeah! Finally something was done!!! I have been wondering about this little boy!

http://www.cnn.com/2006/LAW/06/07/911.death.ap/index.html

Boy's ignored 911 call leads to charges
If convicted, two dispatchers could spend a year in jail

DETROIT, Michigan (AP) -- Two 911 dispatchers who authorities say wrongly assumed it was a prank when a 5-year-old boy called to report that his mother had collapsed have been charged with neglect of duty.

By the time an officer arrived, the boy's 46-year-old mother was dead.

"I understand they get quite a few crank calls, but you have to take it seriously when someone calls 911," Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said Wednesday in announcing charges against Sharon Nichols, 43, and Terri Sutton, 47.

They could get a year in jail if convicted of the misdemeanor.

 

[Amraann]

I am so glad you posted this!! I was totally annoyed that her boss had said no disciplinary action would be taken.

 

[NoraLee]

Link to today's Detroit News article -- June 8, 2006:

http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060608/METRO/606080380

Quote from article:
>>Now 6 years old, Robert Turner lives with his aunt and uncle, Deliana and Tyrone Patterson, who are his legal guardians.
"I'm glad to hear about the charges but I'm a little disappointed when I heard the particularsthat they were not going to be fired," Patterson said. "It's just sad because nothing can bring Ms. Turner back."<<

From The Detroit Free Press -- June 8, 2006:
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2006606080335

>>Kimberly Harris, president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 1023 in Detroit, which represents 911 operators, said the charges are unwarranted.
Harris said the operators had trouble hearing the boy because of faulty headsets. Transcripts of the calls, however, do not reveal the operators asking the boy to repeat anything.

"These operators are being put out to hang like scapegoats," Harris said. "I can't believe that they have been charged."

She said both women were reassigned to the Police Department's records bureau after the nationally publicized furor in early April over the boy's calls to 911. She expected them to be suspended today.<<

 

[Jeana (DP)]

I think these two need to be punished. I think they need to lose their jobs. I DO NOT think, however, that they need to clog up already overfilled prisons with them. Let's leave the space open for women who say, murder their children or sell them to pedophiles. I think the justice system in this country is intelligent enough to come up with some really good punishments without jailing them. :twocents:

 

[Gmommy]

"faulty headsets" or not, when i heard those 911 tapes clearly those operators were in the wrong. Their treatment of this little guy was horrible. I agree that the operators should have to meet with this kid face to face every year. Deriliction of duty doesn't even come close to describing it.

I feel sorry for that kid and his family having to explain that one to him for the rest of his life. His trust in the system has got to be shattered just a bit after this. Poor kid.

 

[meowy]

Forever.. twice a year perhaps, these two operators should each be required to send a card and/or gift appropriate to the child's age.

Even simply a card and a gift certificate to the store. Just anonymously arriving for him, to help him smile. To let him know that, yes.. there really are people who care even if they don't wish to be known.

If the fail in their duties, toss them into a much harsher sentance for a few years. This kid may think no one cares, this might be a way to show him that someone.. two people actually.. total strangers really care about him being happy.

Or payments into a fund for his college future would be even better. But still send a random gift now and then, he is a kid after all and toys are always welcome I'd imagine

 

[Jeana (DP)]

Forever.. twice a year perhaps, these two operators should each be required to send a card and/or gift appropriate to the child's age.

Even simply a card and a gift certificate to the store. Just anonymously arriving for him, to help him smile. To let him know that, yes.. there really are people who care even if they don't wish to be known.

If the fail in their duties, toss them into a much harsher sentance for a few years. This kid may think no one cares, this might be a way to show him that someone.. two people actually.. total strangers really care about him being happy.

Or payments into a fund for his college future would be even better. But still send a random gift now and then, he is a kid after all and toys are always welcome I'd imagine

His college is more than covered with the settlement he'll be receiving.

 

[bykerladi]

I don't think his monetary needs were the point of meowy's suggestion...

 

[Jeana (DP)]

I don't think his monetary needs were the point of meowy's suggestion...

Really? I guess this threw me off:

Or payments into a fund for his college future would be even better

 

[mssheila]

I can honestly say that this is the most abhorrent behavior I've ever seen coming from a 911 operator. Aside from the guy in Texas that made a really off color comment to a mother who wanted the police to break up a fight between her children, this is very uncharacteristic for 911 operators. They are some of the most safety-conscious people I know.

They should be charged with negligent homicide, if you ask me. This story just turns my stomach.:furious:

 

[Louisa]

This poor little guy will live the rest of his life with the burden of knowing he tried to help save his mom's life, then watching her die because his voice wasn't validated.

Hope those dispatchers' court judgment includes a hefty price tag for his counseling.

It breaks my heart thinking about him.

 

[JBean]

Ignored 911 Call Sparks $1M Lawsuit
CBS/AP) A lawsuit was filed Monday by the family of a woman whose 5-year-old son called 911 to report his mother had collapsed and was told by a dispatcher that he shouldn't be playing on the phone.

The family of the late Sherrill Turner is seeking damages in excess of $1 million from the City of Detroit.

Attorney Geoffrey Fieger said the city was not named in the lawsuit because state law prohibits it, but that the city would be liable for its employees. The defendants in the suit are two unnamed dispatchers, and the plaintiffs are the estate of Sherrill Turner and Robert Turner, the boy who made the 911 calls
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/04/10/national/main1486970.shtml

 

[JBean]

Charges against one 911 operator are dismissed


A judge dismissed charges today against one of two 911 operators accused of willful neglect in mishandling a call from a Detroit boy whose mother was lying unconscious in their apartment.
Judge Paula Humphries of 36th District Court said Terri Sutton, a 19-year veteran, may have been rude to the boy over the phone, but she requested a police car, which arrived within 5 minutes
Does rudeness equate to willful neglect?" Humphries said. "Having heard the tapes, I believe the operator may have been rude, but I don't see enough evidence for willful neglect."


The judge issued the ruling after prosecutors rested their case against Sutton and another 911 operator, Sharon Nichols, who faces the same charge in connection with a separate call on Feb. 20, 2006.
Sutton let out a low-pitched scream and hugged her attorney David Lee, who requested the dismissal before presenting his side of the case.
Sutton seemed relieved.
"I feel very happy and I just want to thank Judge Humphries," she said. "This case has turned my life upside down, literally."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080116/NEWS01/80116036/1189/COL12

 

[crypto6]

Charges against one 911 operator are dismissed


A judge dismissed charges today against one of two 911 operators accused of willful neglect in mishandling a call from a Detroit boy whose mother was lying unconscious in their apartment.
Judge Paula Humphries of 36th District Court said Terri Sutton, a 19-year veteran, may have been rude to the boy over the phone, but she requested a police car, which arrived within 5 minutes
Does rudeness equate to willful neglect?" Humphries said. "Having heard the tapes, I believe the operator may have been rude, but I don't see enough evidence for willful neglect."


The judge issued the ruling after prosecutors rested their case against Sutton and another 911 operator, Sharon Nichols, who faces the same charge in connection with a separate call on Feb. 20, 2006.
Sutton let out a low-pitched scream and hugged her attorney David Lee, who requested the dismissal before presenting his side of the case.
Sutton seemed relieved.
"I feel very happy and I just want to thank Judge Humphries," she said. "This case has turned my life upside down, literally."
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080116/NEWS01/80116036/1189/COL12

Let's see what happens to the oone really responsible; sounds like this lady at least sent the cops after the second call.

RE: Large damages. If the woman was not breathing at the first call, even a swift 5-10 minute response would not save her. A lot will depend on the autopsy results and estimated time of death.

Crypto6

 

[AmandaBrown23]

This one really really makes me angry! That poor little boy sat there and waited and waited for help that wouldnt come. They are supposed to send someone out anyways to make sure everything is ok. I know that is what they do here unless an adult would get on the phone and say it was an accident or a child playing on the phone.

 

[T-Rex]

The article points out, though, that the second operator sent the cops--not an ambulance.

 

[tiredblondy]

Does anyone know what happened that finally got the police there?
I cannot imagine how tramuatized the little boy is???I am furious!

 

[JBean]

Does anyone know what happened that finally got the police there?
I cannot imagine how tramuatized the little boy is???I am furious!

The second operator sent the police to admonish the child. It took 5 minutes for them to get there once they were dispatched.
So, while she sent the cops for the wrong reason, she did send them. She was rude and uncaring but that is not a crime.

Regarding the first dispatcher. Her defense at this point is that she could not hear the boy as she has an antiquated headset. but if you listen to the tapes of the calls, she was asking him questions and responding to him. It was pretty clear that she heard him. But even imagining that she really couldn;t hear him,it would be nonsensical to think that if the 911 operator cannot hear you, then the accepted protocol is to declare it a prank and hang up.
Imagine all the people that may be unable to speak, but able to dial 911 if they need help. Would they all be labeled as pranks? IMO, they would have to err on the side of caution and send out LE.
I am sure these people get tons of pranks and they are jaded to a degree..but this is ridiculous, IMO.

 

[LinasK]

The second operator sent the police to admonish the child. It took 5 minutes for them to get there once they were dispatched.
So, while she sent the cops for the wrong reason, she did send them. She was rude and uncaring but that is not a crime.

Regarding the first dispatcher. Her defense at this point is that she could not hear the boy as she has an antiquated headset. but if you listen to the tapes of the calls, she was asking him questions and responding to him. It was pretty clear that she heard him. But even imagining that she really couldn;t hear him,it would be nonsensical to think that if the 911 operator cannot hear you, then the accepted protocol is to declare it a prank and hang up.
Imagine all the people that may be unable to speak, but able to dial 911 if they need help. Would they all be labeled as pranks? IMO, they would have to err on the side of caution and send out LE.
I am sure these people get tons of pranks and they are jaded to a degree..but this is ridiculous, IMO.

I totally agree with you JBean. I saw a glimpse of the first operator on TV, she looked just like a very mean witch trying to cover her own ass.

 

[txsvicki]

These operators should be answerable to neglect or assault just like nurses if they cause harm in their job. Since the city didn't think it was wrong, then they should at least be fired. It's unbelieveable to think that people who actually have emergencies have to be adults with loud clear voices that make perfect sense. People around there should train their kids to call relatives first, then 911, then run get a neighbor who will call again all the while they are paying taxes to the ignorant city workers.