Brickbat: 911 Is a Joke

Viorel Dudau / Dreamstime.com

Houston 911 operator Crenshanda Williams has been charged with interference with emergency telephone calls. Investigators began looking into her after noticing that she had thousands of calls lasting less than 20 seconds. She reportedly told them that she often hangs up on callers when she doesn't feel like talking to anyone.

Comments

[Rat's voting Chipper-Shredder]

Warren v DC did state the government is not obligated to provide emergency services.

[neoteny]

So the callers bounced can't sue the government.

[Rufus The Monocled]

That explains, you know, a lot.

[gaoxiaen]

However, you are obligated to pay for them.

[Vapourwear]

Well, not to you specifically. I'd argue this pattern rises to the level of abdication of duty to the public at large.

[Agammamon]

Except that the court has made clear that the government has no duty to provide emergency services to the public at large.

[Vapourwear]

What case? All I did was check my old outline for OP's citation. I've been wrong in the past.

[The Hyperbole ((Very Tall))]

Further investigation revealed that Ms. William's actions saved hundreds of lives. Including but not limited to - suspiciously behaving homeless dudes, and young kids playing with toy guns and/or gun-ish shaped items.."

[BigT]

"Hello. My 5-yr old son is playing with a gun-ish shaped item. Can you help?"

911: "What is the item?"

"It's my stuffed dildo. And I need it."

911: "I'll be right over."

[gaoxiaen]

I'll be right over if you're not fat or ugly. Pics or STFU.

[Jerryskids]

Williams raised suspicion on March 12, specifically, when she allegedly hung up on several callers ? the first call was ended immediately after she picked it up.

During the second call, an operator ? identified as Williams ? is heard answering "Houston 911, do you need medical, police or fire?"

When the male caller responded, "This is a robbery," Williams is heard sighing before hanging up, according to court documents.

Investigators tracked down the robbery/shooting caller, who confirmed someone hung up the phone the first time he called in, frustrating him, and he had to call back a second time. By the time police arrived, a person was dead.

There are better links that tell more of the story.

[Brett L]

"They don't care 'cause they're state paid anyways"

[crufus]

"Ain't nobody got time for this. For Real."

[Princess Trigger]

I sympathize.
Fight the Power, sister.

[Bodica Slayer of Woodchip]

I thought that was her job - to "make time for this" . . .

Bureaucrats, good God. Better the 911 services be turned over to the private sector.

[Radioactive]

time for robots to take over this delicate task?

[Rich]

Probably.

At least change the number. Thinking about the Twin Towers is triggering.

[pan fried wylie]

easy new number: 0118 999 881 999 119 7253

[Rich]

"OK, I'll put it in speed dial as 911."

[pan fried wylie]

"999" to be geographically accurate.

[Bodica Slayer of Woodchip]

0101111011110000111111111

[westernsloper]

I'm going to have to agree. The first time I read the blurb, I thought, "Houston 911 operator" was referring to some CIA spook in Afghanistan who happened to be from Houston. Or maybe I have watched 13 hours too many times.

Either way, "aint' nobody got time for this. For real."

[Glide]

"Please say the name of the service you need. You can say 'fire', 'police', or 'ambulance'."
"AMBULANCE!"
"Did you say Hamburger? Okay! Our emergency hamburger delivery is on the way."
"Why is that even an option!?"

[Cynical Asshole]

"Did you say Hamburger? Okay! Our emergency hamburger delivery is on the way."
"Why is that even an option!?"

For diabetics when they feel their blood sugar dip. Why do hate diabetics?

[Radioactive]

and ambulances?

[pan fried wylie]

Clambulance.

[Bodica Slayer of Woodchip]

Please say the name of the service you need. For English, press one, Para espa?ol, presione dos.

[Rat's voting Chipper-Shredder]

A task for Tay?

[Jerryskids]

Let's say I decide to run for mayor. I know some of the PTB, the in-crowd down at City Hall and the courthouse and the CofC, the newsspaper publisher and the radio station operator, the movers and shakers and the money men, so I go talk to them and explain to them what I'd like to do as mayor and how they would stand to benefit if I were mayor. They agree that I would be a good mayor for the town - or at least the people that matter, the people like them that run the town - so they talk amongst themselves and get their friends and aquaintances and business associates to kick in a few hundred thousand for my campaign.

[Jerryskids]

I take half that money and hire a campaign manager, let's say the ex-mayor, someone who knows everybody who's anybody, and he in turn uses some of that money to hire some other campaign workers, again, people who know people. Those people in turn use some of the money they've been completely legally been given to hire a third level of campaign workers, the key people who maybe will pay people a few bucks to put bumperstickers on their cars or signs in their yards or wear a T-shirt. And part of the money I use to hire some church busses to take people to a post-election victory party where there'll be free pizza and beer and lots of doorprizes - everybody wins a prize! - which, by the way, stops by the polling places on the way to the victory party. (Did I mention there'll be free beer and pizza and everybody wins a doorprize at my victory party?)

Now, is this politics-as-usual, just running a good campaign the way good campaigns are run, or would a cynical person look at this and say I'm just buying the election the way elections get bought in a corrupt, broken, rigged system?

[Jerryskids]

Are you familiar with the term "walking around money"? That's how Democrats buy elections in machine-run cities - but Trump's crazy and dangerous to suggest the system's rigged.

[westernsloper]

Many people have been persuaded to do many things for free beer and pizza.

[Radioactive]

did you say free beer & pizza? where do I sign up?

[Robert]

Even George Wash. had to learn to "treat" when electioneering.

[straffinrun]

"Houston, we have prob..." *Click*

[The Fusionist]

In case I don't make the AM links:

Would you want to live above a McDonald's?

[Florida Hipster]

Cardinal Domenico Calcagno, who is the head of APSA which is the part of the church which deals with assets, said he was 'not going to back down'.

He said the deal is legally valid and he didn't see 'anything negative' about the proposals.

This guy gets it.

[straffinrun]

Moreno Prosperi said in recent years "the identity of this area has been lost" because of an increase in illegal souvenir stands and mini markets.

How dare they sell unverified souvenirs.

[Florida Hipster]

Free exchange of goods is immoral. I'm pretty sure there is an ambiguous passage in the Bible to support that claim.

[Radioactive]

and if not in the bible I'm sure it's covered somewhere in the CFR in at least as vague a fashion...

[Florida Hipster]

Also yes. I would live above a McD for 30k a month.

[UnCivilServant]

For 30K a month I could rent them the space and perhaps use the money to reside somewhere where I wouldn't have the smell it all day. (I don't care if it's a good or bad aroma, food prep always produces some form of odor which would be omnipresent nearby.)

Of course, the NYMBY Cardinals are not getting the money, nor are they talking about the personal impact.

[UnCivilServant]

*NIMBY

Though in this case it might be NIMDS (Not in my down stairs)

[Florida Hipster]

If the cardinals want to control the space, maybe they should rent it.

[Princess Trigger]

I wouldn't. I'm a weak man, though getting better.
I have to walk past a peruvian chicken place every day on my way home. I only let temptation get me once or twice a month now, but it takes what little willpower I have to get past it.

[Florida Hipster]

Peruvian food is amazing. I didn't have a bad meal when I was in Peru.

[pan fried wylie]

this. fresh fries just a flight of stairs away would kill me in a few days at most. To this day, I'm only alive because running my own deep fryer is too much of a disposal hassle.

[DWC]

Do they not make any attempt to train these people? Aren't they told they are not supposed to hang up on people?

[Rich]

What do you mean, "these people"?

[UnCivilServant]

What do you mean "What do you mean"?

[pan fried wylie]

What do YOU mean "what do you mean?"?

[Radioactive]

narrows gaze?

[DRM]

It's illegal to use training methods that can stop assholes from being assholes.

[Radioactive]

also highly ineffective

[Gadfly]

In fairness, the future President of the United States was trained not to mishandle classified information and did it anyway, so why should lesser government workers be held to a higher standard of actually being expected to follow their training?
/sarc

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

Well, those callers were invading her safe space!

[DenverJ]

"9/11 never forget" click

[DenverJ]

Also, her name is "Creshanda", so she's probably Vietnamese, or something.

[UnCivilServant]

All of the articles I've seen included her mugshot. (and yes she faces criminal charges, no brickbats don't count as articles)

[Robert]

"This place is on fire, somebody's holding a knife to my throat, & there's a 5-car pileup on the street out front!"

"Call back when my shift's over at 4."

[Robert]

"...in This Town."

[John C. Randolph]

brings a whole new perspective to the question of whether it's better to have a phone or a gun in an emergency.

-jcr

[Ranjit Singh, Author]

A gun in the hand is better than a 911 operator who hangs up on you.

[simplybe]

Well if anyone died as a result of her hanging up then charge her with being an accessory to a crime.

[Radioactive]

or at least being an ineffectual asshole

[euniceallison444]

until I looked at the paycheck saying $4730 , I did not believe that...my... brother woz like actualy bringing in money part time from there computar. . there friend brother started doing this for less than 7 months and resently paid for the morgage on there home and bought a new Cadillac .......

........ http://www.jobprofit9.com

[ammythomas251]

until I looked at the paycheck saying $4730 , I did not believe that...my... brother woz like actualy bringing in money part time from there computar. . there friend brother started doing this for less than 7 months and resently paid for the morgage on there home and bought a new Cadillac .......

........ http://www.jobprofit9.com

[thomasammy45]

until I looked at the paycheck saying $4730 , I did not believe that...my... brother woz like actualy bringing in money part time from there computar. . there friend brother started doing this for less than 7 months and resently paid for the morgage on there home and bought a new Cadillac .......

........ http://www.jobprofit9.com