The Dispatcher and Her Officer

Just plain determined to be right - Officer

2011-12-24T09:39:00.000-08:00

Dispatch sends me a call. The essentials boil down to a dispute over a parking stall in a large grocery store parking lot. 2 vehicles were coming from opposite directions and saw a vehicle begin to back out of the stall. Both the waiting vehicles put their turn signals on indicating they were waiting for the spot, so what it came to was which way the vehicle backed out, there in, blocking one from getting the spot.

To the victor go the spoils is the old saying. Well, our caller won the spot. Apparently the other driver drove off, seeking a parking spot elsewhere. Unbeknownst to our caller, the supposed loser went back to the caller's car and wrote in the dust on the back of her car, "I CAN'T DRIVE!" Our caller saw this and was infuriated. She called the police from the parking lot, alleging vandalism. We had no units to respond. She then drove home and called insisting a unit be sent. No units available. A little while longer, and she calls a third time, demanding an officer be sent now, or she will drive to the police station.

I had just cleared a call, running calls back to back and was ready for a little code 7 action (lunch) when dispatch tags me before I could go out in my hidy hole. Dispatch is very frustrated with the caller, and would like me to investigate a misuse of 911. I head over to the caller's address and see her pulling out of her driveway and into the street, apparently tired of waiting and in route to the station. She sees lucky little ol' me, and backs into her driveway.

I make contact and during the course of the investigation, determine our hapless caller has a suspended driver's license and should not be driving. I also determine there is no damage to the car, only embarrassment. I further establish she has no follow up information regarding the would be vandal, and also that in addition to her driving suspended, she has no insurance.

I issue her a citation for driving suspended and no insurance, about $900.00 in tickets, and tell her I will write up her complaint. I further advised her about the misuse of 911. She is outraged. She starts yelling about how she called and a crime was committed against her. I calmly explain that in light of all of the information, with my learning that there was no damage to the vehicle, that her license was suspended and she had no insurance, that according to her driver record, she is a habitual offender and had a list of violations encompassing almost 3 pages, that what the woman wrote on the back of her car was not only the truth, but a public service announcement, and we can't prosecute that!

Bait cars - Officer

2011-12-10T09:30:00.001-08:00

At Big Metro City PD where I used to work, I know auto theft was a serious problem. We had a variety of small import vehicles seized through asset forfeiture that we would put out as "bait cars" for auto thieves and then assign U. C. units to sit on them and wait for the theft to occur, which would eventually happen, and then chase them all crazy to get them.
Well in my new agency Medium Size City PD, we have "bait cars" too, but they bring a whole new game to the playing field. Our bait cars are again small import vehicles seized in asset forfeiture, but then we revamp them and bring them to a whole new level.
The cars are first outfit with GPS tracking. Then they are equipped with several night vision concealed video cameras so as to capture photographs of anyone in any seat in the vehicle. Then we install a kill switch and remote door lock. This allows us to not waste resources sitting on the vehicle, but alerts dispatch when any door is opened. They then start watching remote video feed and tracking the vehicle. They put out the bait car activation and start sending locations to the field units. When we have enough units behind the vehicle, we alert dispatch, they throw the kill switch, the vehicle engine dies, and the doors auto-lock, trapping the occupants inside. When we are set up and ready, we tell dispatch to unlock the vehicle, and remove the occupants at our convenience. It takes some of the sport out of it, but it still has high marks for just plain fun, "like shooting fish in a barrel".

Stupid or just plain ignorant - Officer

2011-11-28T08:35:00.001-08:00

I was called to a shoplift at one of the "national high end department stores" in town. Here is this occupy wall street protestor shop lifting watches to sell for cigarettes. He is nonchalant about his crimes, which technically are worth about $62.00 in theft. In his bag, I find several more watches, which he proudly proclaims he stole from another large chain store on Black Friday. I personally know he was picked up shoplifting at yet a third chain store a week ago. He knows the system isn't going to do anything to him, he will be booked, and released with a court date. He has been given his Miranda rights and is cooperative about telling me about his crimes.

I go to pat him down for anything else on him, and I feel what I KNOW is a large bag of dried vegetation in his pocket in a plastic baggie. I haven't smelled any marijuana yet, and ask him about the weed. He tells me it's not marijuana. I ask it's not? He says no. I ask him if I can pull it out and check. He says sure! I pull it out. He was right. It wasn't marijuana. It was mushrooms. "See! I told you it wasn't weed! It's Mushrooms!" He went on to detail how he had heard about where to get them, and when he had gotten them, never realizing weed, which is a ticket in our state, was nothing like mushrooms, a felony. Oooops!

Can I live with myself? -Dispatcher

2011-11-26T11:51:00.001-08:00

Dispatchers know when they sit in that chair, and are in control of the radio... They hold the safety of the officers and citizens in their hands. They are that Officer's cover, back up.

It's a serious job!

With the job comes certain things to be done in a specific way so everyone knows what is going on.

The computers are a big part of this... CAD (Computer Aided Dispatching) should help you with the street address, hold history of the property and any calls of weapons, mentally ill people, or unwell/health concerns, it should also tell you which agency to send to that location.

The last agency I worked at had the whole city broken down into mile-by-mile numbered blocks. Over time the numbered blocks that were the busiest you just memorized. But you really didn't need to use the numbers, because the computer told you, once you typed in the address, which unit covered that area.

So, if I was sending someone to 123 main street, the computer would say... 1A Town PD responds, 1A Town Ambulance unit and Z Company Fire units go.

There is no looking up in books. Memorizing the whole county or city or waisting time trying to figure out if that address is on the south or north side of the boundary line.

The computer is programmed to tell you!!!!!! It knows!!!!

This one does not!

Which makes it impossible for someone that was not raised in the county to work as a 911 operator in this county. I know.

You call in. Your husband is having a heart attack. You give me your address, The computer does not tell me who to dispatch... I now am looking in another program that lists all the street names with what towns they belong to and who to dispatch. Some streets have 7 pages that I have to look through. It takes literally minutes to determine whom to send.

The CAD system should tell me who to send. I complain, they have no clue why I am upset. I slouch back in disgust. A few asked me what I was talking about. When I explained how it's supposed to work, they exclaimed how that would make life so much easier.

Yes!!! It does!!!

I sink back in my chair and wonder... .How long will it take before I get one of 'those' calls... where the wait causes something bad to happen?

Can I ever live with myself knowing that this should never have had to happen?

The boss comes in the room one day and I mention it again to him. I can't be silent. This to me is serious business and the fact they aren't as concerned as I am is just horrible to me.

He seems to be trying to passify me. Telling me 'We're so sick of Californians coming in here telling us how we're supposed to do our job!' and talking about how he doesn't even think we can do that on this system. I then show him the manual of the program I found online and point to the page where I say, 'see right here, it does do it!!' To which he makes another excuse and I throw my arms up and exlaim:

'Why don't you just put me out of my misery and fire me already?' His mouth is now hanging open in surprise as he sees how serious I am and I continue 'This program is broken! It's not fully programmed and someone is going to get hurt! I'm going to have to live with that!'

The co-worker next to me was in shock. The boss re-composes himself and tried to make excuses.. He was a prior Cop.. He's good at trying to difuse the situation.

However, he came back 15 minutes later telling me he just made a phone call to the company and yes, it does exactly what I was saying it can do. They just need to build their map system to implement it.

So for now, if you call 911, I was going to have to type in your address and then look it up in another program to determine which agency responds.

And the question was still... Can I live with myself if something bad happens?

Some of what was happening! - Dispatcher

2011-11-22T14:11:00.001-08:00

So why did I give notice and leave the job that I loved?

Well, let's just dive in....

When I was interviewed for the position I was shown the 'wonderful new, fully automated CAD system' It was a 'top of the line system'. I think from reading previous posts you know that it is not top of the line and in fact so inferior that it is down right dangerous.

What I wasn't informed of was that I would be called in to work in the middle of the night and as happened to another co worker, I would have to respond no matter what! One co-worker was in a town 90 minutes away having a family holiday celebration (1 week before the holiday) on her day off. The whole family scheduled this day so she could be there and not have a chance of being disrupted if she was called in. She was. She was also told if she didn't respond back into town to work immediately she would be fired. (This is what was being told to everyone by the co-worker).

What kind of life is this? Not being able to have a real day off and not worry about having to respond back in to work when they hunt you down. I'm all for working overtime. I did on average 50-60 hours every 2 months to assist in covering shifts! But... I found this disturbing.

What did I really do? I turned off my phone ringer from the moment I walked out the door on my Friday till the morning I was to work. When I was actually with Officer I would turn my phone in to airport mode so I would never get a call but could still use my MP3 features.

When I was finally released, my schedule was being changed 7 times a month. I walked in to work and was told to go home and come back in 5 hours for a 12 hour midnight shift. A few days later I was working days, then swings, then mids. I was spending my entire life trying to catch up on sleep! Going for literally days without sleep and never did I get a solid 6 hours of anything while I was working there.

When I got to know the wonderful (they are so nice) dispatchers I found out something. 20% had worked there for more then 20 years and 80% had less then 5 years on the job.

The turn over is HUGE!!!

My mother was a smart woman in the restaurant business for years and always told me 'When your service is good at a restaurant you know the management is good. Poor service, poor management'. I couldn't agree more.

I never worked somewhere where I was literally scared of making the wrong move. I watched my co-workers being written up for small stuff that while it was against policy, they themselves caught and fixed! However, 2 weeks later there would be a notice in their inbox advising them of the policy and what they did wrong and while they finally corrected it, they are on notice not to let it happen again! There was not one mistake that I made that did not go unnoticed. Even for the better of the victim/citizen we were written up. In one case, my co-worker saved a life of a citizen, and because she chose breaking policy to save the life, she was written up!

Can you say M I C R O M A N A G I N G???

Oh and did I mention that our every move is video taped? With the exception of the bathroom and the far far corner in the kitchen, everything we do is on camera, and they watch!!

Let me remind you that the CAD system is not set up fully!!! These dispatchers are working with a half a$$ put together CAD system that still makes them do everything by hand or in their case, memory. Basically, the CAD system just helps the administration with times. It doesn't do anything for the dispatchers. In my eyes! I'll focus on that later though.

Moving up here my pay was cut in half, my commute increased from 15 minutes to 50. My gas bill increased, I no longer have set days off and I am rotating on this 14 day schedule that I actually thought I would like, but it always seemed like I was working, getting off work or getting ready for work!

I needed days off that were mine! I longed for my sporadic 4 day off reward!! I dreamed of set days off where I could plug in to my MP3 player and listen to my podcasts and work on my land! It really didn't seem like to much to ask for.

So, as I sat at my dining room table looking out at the 18 pallets of bricks that were waiting for me to lay them into nice neat paths and stairs I drew up a new schedule. Taking into account all the complaints each co-worker had. Fully knowing that I am the lowest (well not anymore) man on the seniority list. I put each one of them into play on this schedule.

Several of us liked it. It was perfect!! But a few didn't. Management saw how it would fix all their issues, but never acted. Some were upset by it and it finally ended up in the recycle bin.

The main complaint? People would rather come in on their days off to work a 12 hour shift then stay over and work a 15 hour day when they were forced overtime on them. I couldn't understand this. I wanted so desperately to have my own days off and plan stuff, I was okay working the longer days, when needed, if it could guarantee me those days off where mine!

At my prior agency we were allowed to help people. At this agency you can not suggest or tell people how they can help themselves. Even if it is not a police matter! You have to take the info and pass it on to an officer that will belly-ache with you (as he should, this is not a police matter) as to why he needs to call this person back about this stupid call... When just a few months prior I was trained and able to not only say 'No' but to give all the idea's and tips on how to handle the screaming teenager, or whatever the situation was.

I was officially, by the minute, getting dumber!

Can you believe that even with all of the above going on... I was still jazzed to go in and help the citizen's in this county? I still liked my job?

So why did I really leave it all behind then?

It will have to wait for a bit.. I have ran out of time and this wind is picking up. We are probably going to lose power again so have to shut everything down. More continued very soon.

Trust me... It really is a good thing wrapped up in a bunch of garbage!

Over Achiever - Officer

2011-11-13T19:23:00.001-08:00

Ok, so the DUII laws are different in this state. Never before had I even thought about arresting 2 people out of a car, both for DUII, but this was shooting fish in a barrel! I was on patrol and got a call regarding a disturbance with people leaving in a vehicle. I stopped one of the vehicles and found the driver was very intoxicated. I hadn't seen the driving, but we had a witness that was more than helpful and was "Mr. Johnny of the spot" and wanted to be very involved. The more I got into the investigation, I learned that the drunk driver was veering her car dangerously close to the witness's vehicle. Apparently, the intoxicated passenger was more aware of an imminent collision than the driver, and grabbed the wheel and jerked it to avoid the impact. Well, the way the law is written here, he was in control of the vehicle when he jerked the wheel, making him in violation of the driving while intoxicated law. He, unfortunately, also had a suspended license for DUII and 4 prior DUII's so, the original driver was arrested for a simple misdemeanor DUII, and the hero of our story was arrested for a felony DUII and a violation of his suspended license, and driving without insurance. I felt badly for him... for a minute. He was a real jerk before he was arrested.

Changes - Officer

2011-11-12T16:21:00.001-08:00

For those that were unaware, Dispatcher and I have had a lot of changes in our lives, as I am sure you all have realized from Dispatcher's last post. But it goes much deeper than that. I have left my big city agency. We have up and moved to a whole 'nother state, and, even though I went back to work for a "large" agency in our new state, Its 1/4 the size of my old agency. Change has not been without its moments... Much good, some... not so much. I could write a book entitled, "Tales of the 40 Year Old Boot." Really. There is a lot to tell. But I will be bringing you all up to speed on that in due time. Right now I just wanted to overview the issues of learning new laws after 20 years, dealing with the Field Training Process, and oh, did I mention those crazy new laws??? Anyways, I think I will start to have more time now and hope to be blogging about it all.

Really #28 - I Quit! Really!! - Dispatcher

2011-11-11T17:27:00.001-08:00

I just want to stop and give you a quick post and let you all know that I quit. My job that is. Not this blog.I have so much to tell you! So much that I want to pour out and have been waiting for the right moment to stop, drop and type it all out for all of you to read. But, I have been figuring out the new 'me' or 'us'.Ok, for some of you that have your jaw dropping on the floor... Pick it up and close it before a co-worker throws a paper clip in it! It was all a good thing! Stay tuned, and I will post all about it!

Cell Phone's and 911 How They Work!!! - Dispatcher

2011-07-22T22:07:00.000-07:00

Officer's Go to the end to learn about what to look and ask for on your end of the mic!

TravelBee posted a comment on my last question section.. Here it is...

Hi Dispatcher - Motorcop suggested you would be a good person to ocntact re a question that I have been interested in for a while now.

How do dispatchers know where a call is being made from? If someone has called 911 on a mobile and the call remains connected with audible yelling/verbal abuse but no direct conversation between call taker and the victim is possible, are dispatchers able to trace that call to a location?

Adding a complicating factor - what about if the location is constantly moving (i.e. in a car)? Does the call need to be connected for a trace to work? How likely is it that dispatchers would take this type of call seriously enough to take it to the point of locating the person? How long would it take.

Thanks for answering - it is much appreciated!

July 18, 2011 9:32 PM

First, Thanks Motorcop for the suggestion!

Second TravelBee, grab a cup of coffee, make yourself comfortable and lets chat.

Cell phones are my specialty! I'm a little shocked I haven't posted about it by now. I was just looking thinking I had. Maybe I haven't because it's actually kind of complicated and simple all at the same time!

How do dispatchers know where a call is being made from?

When a 911 call is received in the center it comes with what is called an ANI/ALI screen. In short that tells us exactly where the Landline phone is calling from. When we get a call from a cell phone the ANI/ALI shows us an address and also a Lat/Long address.

Here is where it gets complicated... Stay with me.. We get 2 types of cell phone calls.

1. Phase 1 = Cell tower location the call is coming from.

2. Phase 2 (Shows on our screen as WPH2) is the actual location of where they think the call is coming from.

When the Cell phone makes the 911 call it sends its information to your cell carrier database and the carrier returns it to our screen. It should always be phase 2... However, if it takes a fraction of a second longer or is a new phone, or very old phone, it will send it to us as a phase 1 (so we have a starting point). This all happens within the moment our phone is picked up and before we say '911 what is your emergency?'. It's fast.

However, if we get a phase 1 all we have to do is hit a 'retransmit' or similiar type of button on our screen and the computer will re-request the location information to us and about 95% of the time return to us a Phase 2 location.

Sounds easy so far, but wait.... With the Phase 2 you get some valuable information. You get meters and percentages. Say it lists you at 123 Main street or better yet we can use the Lat and Long. It will also say:

Meters: 120 Percent: 80

This simply means it believes with an 80% guess that you are within a 120 meter perimeter of 123 Main Street (or the Lat/Long).

If someone has called 911 on a mobile and the call remains connected with audible yelling/verbal abuse but no direct conversation between call taker and the victim is possible, are dispatchers able to trace that call to a location?

Absolutely!!!! But don't bet/rely on it!! Some agencies that I know of send someone to the area no matter what they hear. Each agency has their own guidelines on how they handle cell phone calls. For me, if I hear any type of what I believe to be a disturbance I immediately start searching.

First, I look in our database system for the phone number. Has an officer or Dispatcher ever had contact with that phone number before and if so, where was it? and whom? and how long ago.

Second, I start looking for the location as I described above. I can hit 'retransmit' as many times as I want. I have been known to print out the map of the location on our mapping system at my old agency and with each new location draw a dot and a circle with where the system believed the phone to be. I did it over and over till I could get a 6-12 circles leading me to the one area that they all covered. With that I would send a unit and direct him into the location while I was on my map.

We actually found a man that was calling us and 'pleasuring' himself while on the phone with us dispatchers. It was horrible to have to listen to him... and wonderful when they came over the air and advised us they got him.. and his phone!!

Third, if all else fails, we can call the phone company. Usually the ANI/ALI screen tells us who the phone carrier is, and they are mandated to have a department that releases us the information if there is an emergency situation 24/7/365. They give us the address to where the bill goes. That's it! So always make sure it's up to date with your home address. Worst case, if you are not at home, then you will have told someone there, where you are going to be. For this reason, I never leave my family without them knowing where and what I am up to for the day and my travel paths. I know, it's a little much! But, we all know where we are all at, at all times!

However, if your not home, we may not be able to find you. So it's not something that I would rely on. It is still best to 1. use a Landline phone, or 2. speak into the phone your address to the dispatcher.

Now,
what about if the location is constantly moving (i.e. in a car)?

Simple as pie.. We hit 're-transmit' as much as we like! If your my old agency, it's as easy as pie.. This new agency bites!! I hate it! But either way, I can find out what direction and where you are going. I don't know the car you are in... So if your in the car, I have had females call 911, put the phone on the floor board and talk about the car, and the places that they pass.

Example: Are you taking me to the movie theater right there? Can you turn into the Mcdonalds, I have to pea? I don't like driving on Shaw Avenue? Your black truck is really dirty, do you ever clean it out?

I've actually had a lot of really smart callers!

And,

Does the call need to be connected for a trace to work?

For a 'Re-Transmit' yes, and your cell phone would have to have called us via 911. That's the only way it can work for us. However, that said, we can still call your phone carrier and get your billing location and they will, if it fits there criteria, give us the last location and time that your phone pinged off of a tower and where that tower was. They do this for me when I ask. Because I know what and how to ask for it. It's a rough learning curve with them.

Keep in mind that cell towers in big cities are about 2 miles apart from each other. I have discovered where I have moved to, they are up to 10 miles (or more) apart up here. Very scary if you get a 911 cell phone disturbance and the distance you now have to search is 10 miles. It's impossible for an officer to search that location.

Hmmmm,

How likely is it that dispatchers would take this type of call seriously enough to take it to the point of locating the person?

TravelBee - I don't want to answer this one. Mainly because a lot of dispatchers have no clue about what I just typed. Officers also for that matter. I know, only because I read and listened and asked questions to the phone people that came into our department when it was all being set up. I also seemed to get all the disturbances that were coming in with the problems on the phone.

But to be honest, if you got me on the phone I wouldn't stop till I either found you... Or found total dead ends. You also would have about 20 calls from me to your cell. You would get sick of me! But I would hunt you down till I found you.

For the people I work with now.. I don't think they were ever trained on Cell Phone's. I know this because I got a call up here during training and they tried to tell me to drop it and I tiger hissed at my trainer to back off! (Which ironically she did!) End to that story, someone in a total different state was arrested for abuse! Yeah for me!!! But Sad, because no one asked me what or how I did what I did!

If you got someone from my old agency, you would have a better shot at getting someone that knew what to do. We openly trained each other down there on what we knew! We weren't afraid to share our information and pass it on when needed. Awesome group of people. I would only hope that when the call came in the dispatcher would be able to know enough to ask the right person for help!

If a dispatcher hears a disturbance, she will do what ever she can (and what she knows how) to find the location. It's the knowledge you are after here.

Finally,

How long would it take.

It depends on how in depth you need to be and the size and call load of the agency. At my old agency if you got the call, you didn't stop till it was finished! That was it! The most I spent on a call was about 2-4 hours. a solid 2 hours searching the leads and leg work... and then 30 minute or so slots through the evening to contact the carrier for further or work on it for the officer's a little more. Some calls lasted my whole 10 hour shift and then some, but I didn't work on it that whole time. The officers take them over.

At my new agency here, they are much smaller and while I personally wouldn't stop working on it, I would have to do it in between the radio and phone traffic that was coming in. Frustrating to the bone for me! I also know for a fact they do not know about all the cell phone lingo here! While I tried to share my knowledge, I am a 'big city California girl' they don't want to take instruction from. I had to learn to shut my mouth! :-( Even while watching them do things that are totally unsafe!

I have to say you asked some awesome questions! I hope I answered them for you. Please let me know if you have any more. It's an interesting topic! One, I still play with every day!

Oh, and your cell phone will even call 911 when it's in lock mode... and even when you turn off the phone service to it (as long as it is charged and there is normally cell service in your area!)

Hope that all helps!
-Dispatcher

Officer Notes:

I met quite a few officer's that would ask about my notes in a call. Not knowing what the above mentioned info that I just explained was. So, when you are on a 911 cell phone call and your looking for the caller don't be afraid to ask these things:

Did this come in as a Phase 1 or Phase 2 call?

Remember, Phase 1 is the cell tower location, Phase 2 (WPH2) is the predicted actual location.

If the dispatcher tells you it came in as a Phase 2... Then ask:

What Meters and Percentage did it give you? A good dispatcher will pull up Google and convert it to feet for you. It takes seconds!

Have the dispatcher put in the Lat and Long with the meters and percentage in the call each time they re-transmit! It can come in handy later on if you need it.

All the above will aid you in where and how you need to search the area. There is nothing more rewarding then assisting in finding someone that called from a cell phone that was really needing help and we located them! Even after several calls and no one else could find them! It's priceless!!!! And a really good feeling inside! Still!!! (ok, I'll stop!)

Don't let them disconnect the call till you are with the caller or totally sure you don't need them anymore. The information you can get while they are still on the line from calling in to the center, is totally different from the information we get when we call them back! If they even answer.

Hope that helps!

Oh how I miss a good Cell phone disturbance search call !!!!

SouthLand Season 2 DVD Released

2011-07-22T14:00:00.000-07:00

It Finally came out this month!!!!! SouthLand Season 2 DVD!!!

Can you hear us screaming with excitement!??

We had been checking for months and sadly kept coming up empty for the season 2 DVD of SouthLand. It's on TNT you may be saying and why didn't we just watch it when it aired? Well, it's easy. We work shift work... The both of us!

To get a day off together that we aren't catching up on sleep or running the errands, or taking care of the basic things in life has become non existent for us here. I mean really, we live at the beach and we barely even get there together. That and we love the show so much that it's always been that one show that we watch last, watch together, turn our phones off to watch, and with great anticipation we sit in front of the TV mouths hung open eyes wide open and never a spoken word to be said the entire time!!

It is THAT GOOD!!

So we purchased Season 2 and it arrived this week. We have aspirations to hold a 'Hostage' Event to re-watch season 1 and then watch season 2.. We may even throw in watching the Season 3 that they have been re-airing recently that we managed to record.

The best news about it all - They are filming Season 4!!!!!

One last thing about SouthLand: I was talking with a co-worker from my prior agency a few months back. We were discussing why it was that we loved this show so much. It finally came to me.

'Maybe it's because we can never quite describe what goes on in our day (the violence, anger, outrage, pettiness, stupidity, childishness, betrayal, hatred, pain and utter disbelief). Or the fact that the citizens don't seem to grasp what it is we go through EVERY day. But, it could be the fact that when we watch this show, we see the actor's going through the exact same calls non stop that we do on a DAILY basis! Exactly day for day call for call! '

'It validates that what we do is real, and not us making up a 'good' story!'

Well, ok, even the writers of SouthLand can't beat the sicko father that killed his 9 kids in a cold blooded mass murder like happened in my city! But they get the horrendousness pretty close!

So if you work in law enforcement in a small town or you are just a citizen and you watch this show and think it's just a good show.... Remember while you watch it... It is real for thousands of officers daily! The life they live, the hardships they endure. It is their life! It is as true to a Cops life in a California City that I have ever seen since 1A12. Which is probably why so many officers love SouthLand.

Bless you TNT for picking it up and doing a Season 4!!! You rock!! (Not to mention the other shows on your channel that I have been watching now!)

Priceless Question from a friend - Dispatcher

2011-07-07T11:33:00.000-07:00

Question from dear friend -
Okay so here is my question: When you're dispatching, you need both hands for the keyboard(s) in front of you, right? So how do you key (is that the right word?) your mic when you need to talk on the radio?

My response -
Your priceless!!! I'm so gonna blog this dear! We use the foot peddle! Unless you are my new agency, of which you take your valuable hand off the keyboard and grab the mouse to click on a button and hold it the entire time you are broadcasting the call. Then you have to play catch up on the keyboard! :-) I adore you!!!

I love it when I get questions about my job. Even more so that I have worked at different agencies and can see a different between a well run agency and, well, frankly one where I pray every day it doesn't hit the fan.

- Dispatcher

I am really not your mother!! -Dispatcher

2011-06-30T03:38:00.000-07:00

I once read somewhere... ok, it was in the public works newsletter from the prior city I worked at, that the director felt it was rude to place a sign, in the kitchen, reminding people that we are not there mothers, and to pick up after themselves. I remember thinking how I agreed with him. Everyone should have enough respect for their other co-workers that they pick up after themselves. On the rare occasions that one misses something, just be kind and do it for them.

Well, I have had it!!!! I have just literally stuck to the kitchen floor. I scrubbed off old whipped cream off a spatula and placed well over 15 dishes and pots in the dishwasher. I wiped the crumbs off the stove and counters and I draw the line at cleaning out the fridge. Trust me ... you don't want me to clean the fridge! I have literally Hung every toilet paper roll in that bathroom... I know because I stocked the paper last week and I'm the one last makes all the words face the same direction.

This may seem petty, but I seem to be doing this on a weekly, daily basis!! And it seems to be getting worse!

It's not like you have ever picked up after me, you have not! I clean up after myself even down to the containers I bring and reuse all on my own. So I'm not the issue.

What gets me, is the people that are the issue are the same ones that gripe and complain about people leaving it a mess when they have to clean. Supervisors get involved and its a whole sordid mess. So let me just say.... no supervisors have been contacted during the writing of this post..... but don't tempt me!!!!

I really miss the messy break room at my old agency. At least we didn't clean it and be forced to clean up after someone else's mess!! The mess was just there!!!

just let me help!!! -Dispatcher

2011-06-27T00:47:00.000-07:00

I have the knowledge and skill to find people without ever leaving my seat. I have been doing this for years! So why can't I use my knowledge to find this person that you are looking for now?

Here are some things you have not covered....

Contact the agency his vehicle is registered out of. See if they have had prior contact with him. If so. What kind and type of calls. It would at least tell us frame of mind!

Call his listed phone number in the city he used to live in. Or send a unit to the location.

Call the cell phone company. Where is he actually calling from?

Send the welfare check information to the towns north of us! With his transportation mode.

I'm getting frustrated with the whole 'operator' job. I feel useless!

Really 27! -Dispatcher

2011-06-24T22:06:00.001-07:00

Really??? Really really???

Mr officer, did u really just phonetically spell David to me??

You do know you spelled it with using the name!!

Like this: First of David, David, Adam, victor, ida David!!

Really??

Turn Off The Shower -Dispatcher

2011-06-21T01:04:00.001-07:00

I just sent an officer to a house to turn off the callers shower. Yes, you heard me correctly. The officer calls and asks me if its a for real call.

"Yea it is" I reply."I can't tell a citizen 'no' that would be bad 'customer service' in here."

He laughs, he knows our rules in here. "Besides," I reply "the water is running.... you need to go catch it!"

That is just about the most fun I've had all month.

Talk to Officer -Dispatcher

2011-06-16T05:19:00.000-07:00

The other day at work I was being talked to about a specific employee with another agency. They went on to tell me about suspiciously odd activity that this person has been suspected in and seen around. I was then told if he ever messed with me in anyway not to hesitate to report it.

It was the first time I ever caught myself saying (rather sternly): 'If anyone messes with me, they will have to deal with my officer.'

The look on this units face was priceless! Kind of like a 'there u go', 'don't mess with her', 'she's got it covered', and throw in a 'I wouldn't want to mess with her officer' all wrapped in one.

And to be specific..... they will have to answer to my officer!!! And I love that about him!!!

Chances are if your on parole......

2011-06-13T00:09:00.000-07:00

Chances are if you are on parole and restricted from drinking alcohol and you are found pass out drunk at a local bar.

You are going to jail!!

Just after we pull your rear out of the car you passed out in, in front of the bar and take you to the hospital! We got your number!!

Really #26?? - Dispatcher

2011-06-05T23:04:00.000-07:00

I went from taking 200 calls in a 10 hour shift, to taking 10 in a 12 hour shift!!

Really????

Can I just say it.... I think I am getting dumber!!!

A website just for us!! -Dispatcher

2011-05-29T03:52:00.001-07:00

Check it out.... there is a social media site just for us 911 peeps!! Yes I am already signed up!!

http://WWW.shiftbriefing.com/members/profile/818

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.9

New World CAD Bites!!! - Dispatcher

2011-05-14T11:32:00.000-07:00

This is just my own opinion!!!

I won't even mention all the other dispatcher's that I have spoken to about this New World Aegis CAD system that we are using and apparently seems to be sweeping across the nation as being one of the leading 'best' systems. I haven't met one dispatcher that says they actually like it! Apparently, I came from an agency that ran a third teared system. However, I would take the Data911 CAD system against this system any day of the week!!!!!

Please allow me to vent! First let me say that the system IS NOT set up correctly! It's not even set up completely! CAD means Computer Aided Dispatching, which means that this computer system should aid me in dispatching units to a call. It does not! No suggestions, no clue on what area or who's territory this is!! You do not want to know what I have to do to verify who actually responds to Oak St. Trust me... It's long detailed and well..... I always get it wrong!!

It should aid me in putting an officer on a traffic stop and running his plate and then running his drivers license easily and effectively so as to keep the officer out of harms way! It does not!!!! Far from it!!

The key strokes that we have to do to 1. put an officer on a stop are enormous and unnecessary. 2. The mouse work that is required is unspeakable! and 3. Where is the darn command for running the DL without opening up the call and opening up the stupid tiny tab to run the DL... I want to do it from the Command line without having to remember how many darn semi colons go between the stupid address and the license plate!!! (3 for your information!)

Whoever created this program has either never been a dispatcher or hasn't been a dispatcher recently or has never worked for an agency with more then 3 units going out on traffic at once while trying to dispatch a water rescue!!!! And yes I read the manual to this system I found laying around.

I have on the other hand figured out how to skip the F10 function of creating a quick call and doing it all from the command line. While running the License plate only (only works if its not out of state plate). Saves about 12 keystrokes.

How do you close a call and enter disposition from the command line? I haven't figured that one out! I miss my quick and easy 5G12 C.80..1A3.R (ENTER) and the call was done!!!! I am getting sick of putting the unit in service click with the mouse, click the boxes they called out and then clicking close and returning to the keyboard!!!

Data911 I miss you!!! I miss the simple easy functions. Yes you crashed more!! But you were so much safer in the long run for our officers!

They all hate each other!! - Dispatcher

2011-05-12T11:20:00.000-07:00

It amazes me! Seriously, it does. Everyone in this small agency hates at least 3 or more of their co-workers. They all have their reason's. They all think they are right and justified!! and they all bash the others.

I on the other hand sit there and listen to each one telling me why I should hate, despise, watch my back, not trust, or just plain not talk to the ones they hate.

For a Christian it is extremely hard!! to sit there and listen to these people tear each other apart and feel they are totally justified in doing so. Even harder to hear them talking about how they are Christian and then in the next sentence bash the others again.

I tried to speak up and just be silent. I actually got carried away with it and had to walk in to a co-worker and ask for forgiveness in getting caught up in the hole thing. I think I shocked the daylights out of her! She was speechless! She didn't know whom I was talking with.. but that I was apologizing for speaking badly of her and she was in no way deserving of my horrible attitude and poor choices!

So for now, I sit there and be quiet and just listen. Maybe that's what they all need. An ear to listen to them. Not agree or bash or comment. But just to listen to them.

The one insteresting thing about just listening is.... Person 1 hates person 2 because she is known for doing A. Person 2 hates person 1 because she is known for doing A. Person 3 hates person 4 because she is like B and person 3 hates person 4 because she is like B.

Get it??? It boggled my mind at first. Till I sat down one night and thought it all through. These people literally hate each other because they are totally like each other! They have more in common then the gang bangers in my old city all wearing white Tshirts and blu jeans!!!

'Low man on the Totem Pole'! - Dispatcher

2011-03-31T14:32:00.000-07:00

Settling in to a new agency was way harder then I actually thought it would be. I mean seriously, how hard could it be? I know how to keep an Officer safe and watch his back! I can take a call and get the info extracted out of them in no time flat, and giving advice to people in need is my.... well... Specialty! Seriously, if you have a problem chances are I have been through it, and if not I will help you find someone that can help you with it! Case solved!

Or so I thought! My caulky (what is the correct spelling?) little self! I should have slapped myself!

From my last post Mo posted "There is just so much that will change and honestly it scares me to death. I can't imagine starting low man on the totem pole again." You took the words right out of my mouth!!!!!

I know nothing (let me say that again). I know NOTHING at this new agency. And everything frustrates me!! The laws are all different and I wondered why everyone was telling us we would miss the Penal Code till I realized I now desperately miss the Penal Code!! Dispatcher is code for glorified Operator and heaven forbid we never give advice on anything!!

"Can I tell them to get out of the house that's on fire?"

Response - You can tell them to "do what is safe for them to do"

Really?? (come on, you heard that really coming from a few paragraphs away!)

Even to my prior posts on traffic stops and how unsafe they really are!

It's all just new to me, and I am learning! Like a sponge when I get the chance to learn. My biggest issue now is the new (to me) CAD system and how it works. It just seems backwards to me. I miss the Action line where I put all the requests in and did everything from. I miss the ability to run plates and licenses from the action line and get returns with a flick of the TAB key!!!

So dispatchers (and Officers if you know) what is the name of you CAD program??? I am dieing to know!

When Changes Happen... - Dispatcher

2011-03-08T14:47:00.000-08:00

Last year (you all know some of it) My Officer and I had some really big ahha moments. One of which was when I was sitting at a radio console and heard another officer going out on a traffic stop (the right way!) and the next thing I heard was "Shots Fired" coming out over the air. (officer was fine and all suspects in custody!)

Doing what I do best the channel was placed on emergency traffic and all available units were rolling. Well, lets face it... ALL units were rolling whether they were available or not. That's how my city rolls! You call out for help, you get it! All several hundred of them that were on duty!

When the dust settled down and I realized that I could once again 'breathe', I put my head down in a large sigh of relief and asked God, "When Lord?" It was a question I asked often when it was busy and mayhem was taking over our city. When the only good that was showing up was the brief and rare pause in calls that allowed me to actually take a drink of water.

I swear God replied with, "I keep sending you job openings, when are you going to apply?" I put my head down and wept silently as the cleanup traffic was in my ear. I was spent! God knew it! I knew it! and the job that I loved in the city that I lived had sucked the life right out of me! To top it off, my officer had been emailing me job openings around the area we were wanting to move to, and I kept saying 'no' we weren't ready.

I was a fool! At that very moment I knew it. A total and utter fool that picked up her phone and text her Officer how sorry I was for not following God and my Officer's lead and for him to apply for the next place he wanted. I hit send and as I did, a text came through from my officer, whom hadn't yet received mine about an opening right near where we wanted to go!

Now that's just God!

The changes started so rapidly! Like the moment we put our house up for sale and the next day it was sold! To the prepping of our land and trying to get it ready and having nothing in line to the next day everything was in line. Ok, so I still wish I could drink the water that comes out of our faucet, but that's a minor convenience that when it does happen I will rejoice greatly in! The point is, we trusted God and it all came together.

But in a totally different way then I ever expected!

I have a Question for Officer about Safety!!

2011-03-07T12:45:00.000-08:00

I'll make this short.... I have a question for the Officer's (Wives can chime in also I would love your opinion).

You are doing a traffic stop. I have always had traffic done this way.... 8B12 traffic Fifth and Main License 4dfs123 (fake) on White Cadi with 2.

This tells me where you are, What the plate is and the color and make of the vehicle and how many people are in the car.

Recently I was talking with someone and they do traffic this way "8B12 traffic Fifth and Main License 4dfs123."

Thats it!! Now, I was also told that if the officer gives the wrong plate not to worry about it. That they know the plate they give and not to correct them or ask for it again at all.

I have problems with this. I will explain a lot later. But for now, I need to know - Which way would you officers prefer?

Here is my take:

This just poses as a major safety issue to me. For one, if the plate is wrong, should we not immediately confirm with you that it came back as not good? I was told the dispatcher is not to bother the officer that they are on an important stop and shouldn't have to worry about trying to talk to Dispatch. Wouldn't you want to know the vehicle you are walking up to, or standing next to, isn't a good plate?

Second, if something happens..... Wouldn't you want your partners to know what type of car and how many people they are looking for while they are racing to get to you. What if your not able to call out over the air anything but "Shots Fired"?

That's just my thoughts..... Tell me yours....

Personally, I think an officer should be able to handle the stop and dispatch giving them the info in their ear. I'm having trouble with this lack of info concept right now.

Thank You! - Dispatcher

2011-01-28T20:11:00.000-08:00

With just a few more posts on this subject I really feel that I need to impress upon those that want to know, what I have learned.

I want to thank everyone that commented on the last one.. and the prayers! I appreciate them! I need them! Our daughter needs them! And thank you for participating in the miracle that God has in store for us all!

I work in a city with over 1/2 a million 'legal' people. There are only 4-12 of us answering the phones at a time so the chances of you getting me when you call 'each' time are slim. The chances of me remembering you, are slimmer. I take a minimum of 100 calls a day with barely 8 seconds in-between a call on average. It's almost like I'm dancing with cattle on a cattle drive! But, there is a group of people that call often, that I have always remembered. Those are the parents of users. Let me explain!

Parent's of users call often. They are embarrassed when they call and frustrated and angry. They come home from work to find that their child has broken into their house, is asleep on their couch or worse, burglarized them! They call because their kid is screaming in the backyard because they want in the house in the middle of the night and are angry and violent when the parents of the adult kid say no! They are calling because their adult kid has stolen their car for the third time and last time they had to have it fished out of the canal! They are embarrassed because their neighbors have to hear the screaming from their adult child, the name calling and blaming that they were unfit parents and if they had raised them right, they wouldn't have turned out this way.

I stop and wondered what these parents did or didn't do to cause their kid to be like that? I mean really. If they raised the kid right they wouldn't turn to drugs like that. Or treat them so horribly! Right?

My eye's were opened!

I am being blamed by my daughter because I left her father 6 years earlier!! (again, not the Officer! He is and always will be the love of my life). I am the bad person because I sold the house she grew up in.

Her husband is calling and Facebooking me because I won't go rescue her. What kind of a mother am I that I won't let her sleep on my couch!? I should report her missing since I work for the police department and all! (She's not missing dude!!!!)

Co-Workers were heard saying: What kind of a mother is she not helping her daughter fight this? She must have really been a horrible mother!

Facebook was all a twitter with comments slinging back and forth about my mothering abilities.

It was painful! Pointless! and down right mean!

I had a long conversation with my own mother (one is blessed to have a mother like mine! They are rare!). She was an integral part of raising my own daughter and after talking to her I learned to not listen to everyone else. I raised her right. I taught her right from wrong. Everyday was a lesson, from how to properly fold a fitted sheet to not to use drugs and why and about sex! I taught that kid everything I knew! She knew better!!

My mother said something that I want to share... "You can't put a bad apple in a bag with a few good apples and expect to pull out the good apples untouched by the bad!" She went on to say "Where blessed we got you back like we did!"

The bad apple would have been my ex. For those that have read some of the chapters from my journal I had been putting online... You know what I'm saying. Those that want to read send me an email and I'll send you the website addy ('dispatcherandofficer' gmail address).

It never dawned on me the pain that these parents were actually going through till I myself started walking down this road. It is a pain that I can not even describe. One that sits in the back of your mind with hundreds of 'what if's' floating around daily. It is a pain that is soul reaching. Where you can feel it, but unable to pinpoint its whereabouts and you realize it's coming from your soul. Where you realize that you, Jesus, The Holy Spirit and God are sitting around a camp fire and are all in tears over the loss of a life that you all so dearly love, but the life is not actually gone yet. You try to make sense of it all, only to realize that you have to continue to live. God put you on this earth and you have to live for His purpose.

So grab a bag of marshmallows and start roasting them over the camp fire. Because God did not put me on this earth to be miserable! So heaven help the rest of the world! Besides I just found out they make marshmallows covered in coconut! Who can't smile over a camp-fire toasted coconut marshmallow?????

What I would like to say:

Dear parents of adult users,

I am sorry if I ever took your call and even for a moment sounded as if the call was 'just routine' to you. I am sorry that you have to live in fear of whom is calling or texting or knocking on your door. I am sorry that you have so much heartache and pain during the holidays or everyday that sometimes you just want to hide under the covers and pray for calgon to takes you away!

You were the best parent! You do not deserve this adult person coming to your door and steeling from you. You don't deserve to live in fear of your life, sanity, possessions and health. You shouldn't have to be forced to call the police and wait sometimes hours for them to come to your house just so you can get some sleep as they drive off your adult child to jail for the night.

I am sorry that Christmas and Easter and your birthdays have a hole in them that you can not fill. A void that floats out in space dark and cloudy unable to be repaired by anyone! Even the one that put it there.

I am sorry that there is a name in your household that by its mere mention brings you deep sadness, severe worrying and embarrassment all in a moment.

Please know that I am praying for you. I pray that one day you get a call from your child and they are healed. That they come to you whole and healthy and full of life as they realized what they did was wrong. That they appologize for all the pain that they caused you and you can rejoice in their sobriety and wonderful life they have.

Until then, I pray they do not call, you are unharmed, you can get a good rest and have peace in your heart. Know that I am praying for strength and peace for you.

Dispatcher

A few pics from da hood - Officer

2011-01-19T19:45:00.000-08:00

Here's a couple of sights that caught my attention. The first was just funny. A guy arrested for drug sales who has his excuse printed right on his t-shirt. Given the "hood" he was in, it should have read, "Hey, Mr Police, I have dope for sale in my back right pocket. Be sure that is written correctly in the report".

The second "gentleman" was arrested for... wait for it... domestic violence. Apparently someone took his tattoo literally and did love a thug. Unfortunately, thugs don't have a whole lotta love they can give back. One should always take into consideration the definition of thug before deciding to love one... for those that need definition, see Miriam -Webster-

Definition of THUG

: a brutal ruffian or assassin : gangster, tough

— thug·gery \ˈthə-g(ə-)rē\ noun

— thug·gish \ˈthə-gish\ adjective

See thug defined for English-language learners »

OH MY GOODNESS - OBAMA TATTOO????? - Officer

2011-01-16T19:47:00.000-08:00

The other day, I stopped this kid involved in a disturbance. I was checking his hands for cuts and so forth and I saw this tattoo. I read it and had to do a double take. O-B-A-M-A on his knuckles. Huh??? I asked him about it. He said he got it done as a dare after Obama won. He was a tattooed gang member, with tattoos covering just about every visible part of his skin. I don't know who should be more embarrased. Obama or this kid. Things we regret when we are kids... this one is going to haunt him...

Hooray For Seat Belts - Officer

2011-01-11T19:35:00.000-08:00

What we have here is the failure of an officer to successfully navigate a turn while responding to a high priority call. He slammed into a tree. He was wearing his seat belt. He walked away with minor bumps and bruises. Enough said.

From The Heart - Dispatcher

2011-01-09T17:52:00.000-08:00

I have been gone awhile. Well, sporadically posting here and there and not really with any normalcy. All for the simple reason that my life is not really normal at all. Yes, I know I work in Law Enforcement and the only reason people take those jobs is because they are not normal and working around people that are horribly in trouble probably lends ourselves to feeling more normal then we really are.... Life in our world has not been normal for us recently.

With hands that are shaking in total sadness let me explain: Usually I keep silent about the bad things that happen in our live's. solely because complaining or looking for pity is not me at all. But after much thought, and prayer, I feel as if I should lay it out on the line for you all so that you can perhaps see your callers in a different light. So, over several posts let me explain the following:

A few months ago (ok several), I was working late and a co-worker comes up to me and says 'look at this call'. She gives me the call number and I bring it up. Let's just stop here and let me tell those that are not in dispatching that those 4 words usually do not mean anything good in our world. This is one of those situations, it wasn't good. What I was reading was a call from a female that wanted the girl that was passed out on her couch coming off her meth high removed from her home. Apparently the female on her couch was a strung out girl that was bouncing from couch to couch to sleep.

The females name was my daughters! It was my confirmation that my adult daughter was indeed mixed up on drugs. It was devastating! Mind you, we have not had the best relationship after my divorce from her father (Not the officer folks!!), but my daughter and I had been working things out and loving each other again. This came as a blow, I didn't even know she was still in the same city! Last I had talked to her she was going back to her kids and husband in a totally different state and she wasn't an easy one to get a hold of.

The next day I am sitting at work, again working late, when I answer the phone it is our pastor. He tells me that my daughter is in the office asking for help and they will be helping her. It was an answer to my constant prayers since the call from yesterday. Over the next few days they were helping her get into a rehab center. She was sitting at our church, the church that she grew up in. Praise God that she knew where to go for help!

I was able to get off work early and stopped by to see her before my doctor's appointment. Some might wonder why I didn't drop everything to just stay with her. I will explain that later. Looking at her was like looking at a stranger. Her eye's were black and her skin was chalky. My heart hurt so intensely that I could barely sit next to her, in fact, I was shaking then just as I am now writing this post to you all. She looked like she was dying in front of my eyes and she was just in the beginning stages of using.

She sat and told me she used because it made her not 'feel'. I could understand that statement. I wished I didn't 'feel' the pain I felt when I was sitting next to her. I asked her, "Don't you want to feel your babies hugging you?" She looked down and just exclaimed that her husband already got an attorney and she wouldn't be able to see them again. No matter what I told her on how it was never to late, she didn't hear me.

The drugs where in control of her. Heaven forbid I actually fill her with the truth! She wouldn't believe her mother!

She couldn't stay clean long enough to test clean, and she lost the bed at the rehab center that they had for her and she disappeared into the dark world once again. Over the next several days I scoured the city and contacted all my resources on how to help her. I was her mother and while I knew in my heart she needed to help herself. I wanted to have the tools available to her when she was ready.

I found out a lot. But the mostly, I found out that I can not help her. That for long term permanent help that mother's and father's are to close and I have to step aside and let her hit bottom and discover herself that she can help herself.

That is way harder to do then it is typing it!!!

The experts that I contacted were past users, parents of users, counselors to users, pastors, users, professionals in the industry, Law Enforcement (of course!) to just name a few. They all said the same thing, me getting involved would only make it worse. That this was the one thing she would have to do on her own. The only thing I could do was pray for her and wait for her to get better if she did.

They also prepared me for the worst, "she may not get better, or she may get killed!"

Then a friend not even knowing what I was going through said this: "God loves our children more then we ever could!" I burst into tears when she said that.

I sat down and started posting that I loved her on her Facebook page. Uploading video of her as a kid, pictures of her kids, video's of songs that I knew she would love to hear. She removed me and blocked me from her friend list. In a way, I praise God for that action.

As a dispatcher or Officer you know what the future holds. That was not (to date) the only call involving her. Chances of her showing up at the house in the middle of the night flying high like a kite demanding or fighting for something are great. Break in's to our house are even greater as she knows what we 'have' in the house. Family members of drug user's are put through an enormous amount of pain by the user! I know, I take the calls everyday!

I praise God again that just a few weeks before we put the house up for sale, and it sold in less then 24 hours, above price!! Was God looking out for us? I'm betting He was. However, I didn't sleep at all till we moved out of the house. I always had an ear perched and eye open to what was going on outside.

I thank God for the friend that pulled me aside and told me that she may resurface several times, saying she is clean and wanting help, only to find that she slips back into the dark world again. "That's just their MO honey. It's what they do". It's also what she is doing.

So, here I sit several months later, the last time I saw my daughter was at church. I can see now, having stepped away from that day that she was high even then. I had always told her I had a zero tolerance against drugs, and now she was testing me. Believing she was on the path to getting help, I cupped my hands around her cheeks and looked into her once blue eye's and told her "I love you! Please get help! I beg you!! Please!" With tears in my own eye's I drove off wondering why she showed no emotion when I hugged her.

"I use so I don't feel mom!"

Felony Sleepies - Officer

2010-12-18T09:37:00.000-08:00

I get a call of an on going noise disturbance. The reporting party is upset because the neighbor is intentionally disturbing his peace by slamming the doors. I respond to the call because, quite frankly, there is no one else, and I am close. The complex is a housing authority project, which we all know is quality construction, thin walls, concrete flooring, and so forth. So I get to the call and contact the reporting party. He goes on and on about how the neighbor family is intentionally making noise to irritate him. I listen to his rant for 5 minutes, not having heard anything next door. He is telling me how its been going on for hours. I tell him I will take care of it and go next door. Its a Sunday morning, about 0900 hours. I knock on the door. I knock again. I knock yet again. A child, who was obviously sleeping, answers the door. I explain the problem, as the rest of the family of 5 show up one at a time in the doorway. All of them in their night clothes, rubbing the sleep out of their eyes, pillow hair in full effect. Obviously they have been sleeping. I can see they don't know what the heck I am talking about. Needless to say, I am quite sure they have not been harassing the reporting party this morning. I tell them to go back to bed and apologize for waking them. I go back to the reporting party and tell him its been taken care of. A few days later, the housing authority calls me and asks about the call. I tell them and then they explain that the reporting party is crazy.

Really??? Can we just take the report already? - Dispatcher

2010-11-20T13:27:00.000-08:00

I like puzzles. I do! Just not one's that make citizen's run around in circles and pat their belly 5 times while they stand up and sit down and have to call in several different ways to report something. To me, we should just take the call if it fits the first time the person calls in. I have noticed that sometimes during certain times of the day some callers have to call in a few times to actually get someone to make up a call. Let me just explain!

A very nice young female calls in. She is talking with me and trying to tell me that this is the second time she has called in about her stolen vehicle and her brother has also called in. Since she is calling in again, about her stolen vehicle, I assume (first error) that there is a call holding for her. I am wrong.

Through a lot of messages sent around and looking at our phone log (where I can see the last person that she spoke to in our department) and sending the dispatcher a message and asking her about this caller and getting the reply I got back, this is what really happened -

Female called in about her vehicle being stolen. Said her brother found it at an unknown street location and was waiting by the vehicle. She wants to report it stolen. Dispatcher tells her to call back or have her brother call in with the address of where he is at so we can put in a call.

Brother calls in to report that the car is at this specific location and wants to report it stolen for his sister as she told him to do. He does not know where the car was originally stolen from. Dispatcher tells him to call his sister and have her call it in to report it stolen as we need her address to start the report.

Female calls back and get me!

I am sure we can tell where this is heading!?

I make up the call, with the sisters address reporting the vehicle was stolen and send it out to be broadcast to all the officers and give her the call number so that she can have her brother call in, give us the event number and tell us where the vehicle is at. I tried calling him, but he didn't answer the phone when I called. I then sent message's around to everyone telling them the call number and what was going on and exactly what to do when the brother called in.

This is not rocket science!!! Seriously people, making a call take's 30 seconds. And to be honest, per policy we have to take that call the first time they call in. It's an officer safety issue and we need to keep our officer's safe!

Just call me the clean up girl! - Dispatcher

2010-11-16T13:22:00.000-08:00

Clean up girl! That should be my new name. It seems that more and more calls that come in I end up having to finish. Let me explain just a little.

We have this position at work, where one person is always sitting at. The person's sole job is to make all the calls and complete the requests that the officers ask for over the air. So they need a tow? Send it on over! Need someone to call back a caller and let em know your on the way? Send it on over! Need more info on the call.... It gets sent over!

I will probably say that most officers can relate with this last statement. I have said before that I didn't think there was such a thing as asking 'to many' questions. So imagine my surprise when I get a request from the radio dispatcher to call back the citizen and ask them for more information on the call.

Let's just say... I hate this type of request! Further let me say that I ALWAYS look up the call taker and see who it is that I am cleaning up after! ALWAYS!! Today was no surprise when I opened the call and read it. Short and sweet it read:

'Suspicious subject near the building possibly 3 heard citizen request area check'

I am to call the citizen back and ask them where the subjects are. I can all ready tell you that there is so much more I want to ask then just where they are! So as I am calling, and the citizen answer's and I get him on the line and my first question is 'can you see the subjects sir?' and he tells me 'no, I can't see them I can just hear them. I'm stationed inside the office building at (address)'

Why was that not in the call? That the citizen could only hear? and had no visual???

The whole call just goes on from there... about 4 updates with detailed info later on what he 'heard' only and I already painted a better clearer picture then the one liner of the call it was!

It amazes me the lack of effort put in to actually getting the info on the calls. I mean take this man, he not only could hear the different subjects talking, but he could make out the races by the tone and type of words they were using. He was able to tell me by the sound of the doors he heard where they possible where and while we probably didn't find them..... When asked and allowed he provided a well detailed map of where he heard them walking and heading in to.

So, if you don't have visual of something... No worries, just use your ear's to see next time. They are just as good as your eye's! We can use them!

Clean up girl signing out!!!

I Got an Apology Letter! - Dispatcher

2010-10-22T06:51:00.000-07:00

Sitting in briefing I'm handed a letter and low and behold the first thing in my mind is 'oh crap someone is complaining about me!'. Nope, someone whom called a few weeks earlier was writing to say they were sorry for calling 911, not once, but twice!

The call itself was funny indeed! People were hiding in bushes with their kids and removing doors from vehicles on the block! Units responded and left unable to find anyone in any bushes. The woman called back and said they were still out there and the doors were actually off the vehicles and she was scared.

I would be also!!!

However, as I read the letter I realize, I would probably be seeing the same thing she was seeing if I had taking as much pain medication as she said she took that night! She was very kind to write and apologize for calling both times in to 911. My first letter ever! Thank goodness I was nice on the phone! Whew!!

Note to self: Don't over take any type of pain medication in fear of having to write my co-workers an apology letter!

Attack Dogs come in all sizes (I guess) - Dispatcher

2010-10-05T12:14:00.000-07:00

An angry man calls in. Saying he called in yesterday and is upset that the animal control people did not do what he called them to do. He wanted them to pick up a visucous dog that was in the neighborhood yesterday and all the did was 'drive around, they didn't even get out of their truck!'.

So today he is calling back. Already upset and yelling at me as I pick up the phone about how he pays his taxes (what do they mean when they say that anyways?) and how he is not getting any service! The dog is still in the neihborhodd and just charged at him!!!! He can't get animal control on the line and he's tired of waiting on hold.for them. It took him and his neighbor 'forever' to coax this dog with food and treats into the shed in his back yard and he wants animal control out NOW!!!

Well, I am tired of being yelled at!! So I transfer him to animal control and they answer!!! For me!! It's the special bat phone thing! As I connect (after telling her all the information I had already) He starts yelling at me to give him the number that I called that got to animal control so quickly.

I manage to evade the question (I hate to say 'no') and animal control takes over! I listen in, only to verify we weren't really needed. What I do hear causes me to nearly roll over, off my chair, in deep silent laughter till I can disconnect!

That's when I heard her ask it.... "what type of dog is it sir?"

And he replied... 'A chihuahua!'

Really???? ROFL!!!! hahahaha.. Ur scared of the Taco Bell Dog??? hahahahahaha

Oh, I will be nice. I promise!

No! I can't!! "snip snip snip! bark bark bark!" It's a toy dog!! It's a tiny little think that frankly would be scared if it ever met my CAT!!!" This big mean burly man on the other end of the phone demanding stuff from the woman he is talking to is scared of the Taco Bell Dog!!!!!

Motors Motors Everywhere!!! - Dispatcher

2010-10-03T11:21:00.000-07:00

Picture this - I sit down at the Motor channel and open it up! They are all logging on one after the other. Some cover the other a bit but I get them all logged on. Then silence!

I sit there listening to the silence and remember the good ole days of the motor channel! I think for a bit of Motorcop and his blog and just sit. Then it happens!! The explosion of traffic that only they can give!

It is a constant barrage of stops and plates and license statuses and suspended info and cite dates and tows and it never ends. The entire city 30 units all on one channel doing nothing but stop after stop after stop!!

Till it does. It's silent again! and I can breath!! For a moment!

Then it starts again! and I am pounded once again and it dawns on me in the middle of it all! I picture them all standing on the street corner all huddled in a circle, mics in hand, eyeing each other with 'the look' 'ready??'!

One by one they key up just after the other and giving me no time to finish the others request! Only stopping long enough to laugh inbetween their pauses. Pauses of mercy only to let me breath!

Near death by motors!

I am now laughing! Determined to win their game! Sit up straight and fingers pounding on the keyboard! I will win!!!!!

Street corner or not I will win!!!

Just the info please! - Dispatcher

2010-09-28T11:21:00.000-07:00

Thought you might like to be involved in our recent conversation today! Just in case you miss it!!!! I am again trying to extract info from our citizens.. and yes, it would still be easier to pull teeth from a possum!

Now.,... Start at the bottom and read up!!! Thats the way we roll!!!

probably huh!!!

suspect male adult, 20-30s thin build, about 6-0, last seen wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans.. with a black gun.. left on a black bike south bound on main street! right there. that fits 90% of the people we are chasing!! So much for individuality!
From:Ofcr
hahahaha.. probably be more accurate than caller's!!!!
From:Dispr
i spend most of my time begging for the answers to my questions.. one of these
days im just going
to fill in my own blanks!!
From:Ofcr
u go girl
From:Dispr
Now you tell me!!!!!!!! ;-)
From:Ofcr
hhhahahha, just accidentallly hang up on them
From:Dispr
can i go home now? passing the phone back and forth is not my idea of fun!!!!
From:Ofcr
OK THANKS

I can see you!!! - Dispatcher

2010-09-07T07:03:00.000-07:00

A unit comes over the air and asks - "Where is car 297A00?"

I pull up the screen and punch in the car number and click the correct mode to search for the vehicles that are off line. A great feature to know how to use by the way for when officers 'lose' their vehicles in the parking lots. I pipe up to the unit "vehicle is along the back wall about 7th vehicle in from cross street!"

He's such a funny officer - Pipes up and says "Copy, do you see me standing near it?"

Now, you and I know I can't see him standing near the vehicle. That would be video policing unit that is just one the other side of the room. So I pipe up "affirm! Looks like ur done loading vehicle. I'll send you the next call sir!"

I know! I'm so mean! We were both laughing! But hey I can play along just as well as they can dish out! Hahaha and for the record, I did not send him a call. I let him gas up his vehicle, wash the car and get breakfast before I sent him a call.

But I did play with him and put his vehicle on tracking on my computer map the whole time sending him messages the whole time.as to where he was!

I don't think he knew we could tell that much about his vehicle location!

1144 = Dead - Dispatcher

2010-07-25T13:22:00.000-07:00

I call Animal Control and tell them we have a dog 1144 on main street just north of Secondary street.

She replies “No problem 1144 main street at secondary. We’ll get someone out there right away!”

So I replied (Scared they would set there GPS’s to 1144 Main street and be in the WRONG side of town. “1144 is code for dead honey!”

She burst out in laughter and replied “OH, I will always remember that for next time!”

Priceless! I do give her credit though it is still very early in the morning.

May God rest the poor dog’s soul.

How do some get home? - Dispatcher

2010-07-20T19:06:00.000-07:00

Some time's I wonder... and watch someday I will say it....

"Sir, how do you get to work each day? and when your at work, how do you get home?"

It often amazes me how people actually function in society! I mean I've been blonde all my life and suffered through countless jokes and teasing's about how there was nothing between my ears but air.. and 'TGIF' written on my shoes really meant "Toes Go In First" (Yes it was funny the first two times). But lately, I really do wonder, How do you get home? Cause the question your asking me causes me to shake my head and wonder if I need to send you a cab to lead you back to your people for a reboot!

You are seriously missing some important updated drivers!

Patriots - Dispatcher

2010-07-10T16:23:00.000-07:00

There has been a little bit of a phenomenon going around several police departments here in California and another state from what I hear.. And it has to do with this book... Amazon has it here. It speaks for itself. And if you are an officer in the survialist mode and trying to get your wife to move along the path with you... Let me just say, when my Officer bought me the book on CD's and asked me to read it I wasn't going to say no.

Actually, I loaded it up on my Phone and off to garden in the early morning hours I went. It was halfway through when a group of men went to try and pick up the other part of their party that I literally jumped as my neighbor was behind me trying to talk to me! He had no clue I had headphones in, and no clue what the men were facing just by taking a road trip.

If you get this book make sure you get the latest version printed December 2009. Appears James Wesley Rawles actually rewrote the book just after Obama took office. Very fitting indeed.

Men, put it this way, I have totally turned my thinking around. I was a big live off the grid as much as possible type person before, but never into the gun scene. Now, I am trying to learn as much as I can about guns. I have a long way to go... but as long as I'm learning!

In fact, our parents have read it and friends and this seems to be all they can think and talk about recently. I wanna be like Lisa!

THE BORDERS ARE SECURE proclaims Rep. Pete Stark at Town Hall - Who you ...

2010-07-07T08:49:00.000-07:00

For our friends in Arizona... I want to share with you just how the citizen's really feel and how they are 'screaming' for help down their!!! Your not alone! Just no one is listening to the million of people that are in California that are screaming to their elected officials!

Watch for the lady in the kacki colored hat (about in the middle of the film). I swear she was saying words out of my mouth!! And the man that started all this.. the one we never see - Right on dude!!!! High Five!!!

Pete Stark.. Its time to retire!

The Officer wanted this to be a political free blog... Well I guess now I have totally failed on that one. Ooops... Oh well, he will just have to catch me first! (now that sounds fun!)
-Dispatcher

Really?? Pinal Co., AZ Sheriff Receives Death Threats From Mexican Mafia

2010-07-06T16:16:00.000-07:00

If you are married to an Officer... Male or Female.. It doesn't matter! This makes me angry enough to start to curse!!!! Since I don't believe in cursing, I'm going to just end this post here. Because I can see it now - The white house will come down on me and the blog will cease to exist over night for what I have to say to the man that is tearing our country apart piece by piece! Belief by belief!!! (Yes, the rant is starting... I'm signing off)

May God bless all the law enforcement Officer's out there! May he keep you safe and bring you home to your loved one's each night! Dispatcher

I Think CPS Is Broken - Dispatcher

2010-06-20T11:53:00.000-07:00

My love for CPS has dwindled to an ‘I hate them so much I never want to meet them on a street corner ever!’ In my work, I do deal with them and I do all the time. However, in my personal life I try to stay away as far as I can. Except recently and they didn‘t disappoint me! I have this cute adorable young friend of mine that for some reason likes to tell me everything! And everything she does tell! (Most people for some reason do! Interesting!)

With what she tells me.. she loves her father and She doesn’t have a mother that could even come close to being mother of the year and for some reason she likes to come visit and play crafts with me and sometimes show me her progress in her Violin. Over the course of almost a year I have been listening to her and quietly telling her father things she tells me and told him that he should probably find her someone professional to talk to.. And he did just that!

It breaks my heart that this girls own mother seems to be as cruel as she is. She would tell me how she would have to clean her room (of course I agree) and clean her siblings room (what?), Clean the living room and do the family laundry (excuse me??). She does all this while she is caring for her 1 year old and her just over 2 year old brother’s. By caring for them she tells me she watches them while her Mom and her Husband are in the room sleeping. She changes the diapers and she fixes them bottles. She doesn't think there is anything wrong with this. But she followed that up once with a happy smile saying “But sometimes my Mom helps me!” Excuse me??

She has trouble in school which sometime’s I would help her with her work but since I don’t get to see her regularly, I do a lot of praying for her. We go to the same church when she is with her father, so we at least have Jesus in common! And she loves Jesus!!!

Her school work concerns me even more when I asked her one day how she finds time to do it. She tells me she does it in between watching her brothers and sometimes late at night before she goes to sleep. She usually puts herself in bed around 1000 to 1100 after she finishes her chores. Her father tells me she is usually exhausted on the weeks he gets her. She also told me that she gets up at 3 in the morning to care for her little brother that still doesn’t sleep thru the night! She get’s up because her mother and her mom's new husband won’t. So she get’s up and takes the little boy to their room to be with his dad and then she goes back to sleep.

I had enough at this time and called CPS. I don’t know her mothers address but I knew I could get it with no problem. What I wanted to know was what could be done. After explaining it they asked me if the little girl would come forward and say it was true. I sadly had to say ‘no’ (she is terrified of her mother she only tells me this because she trusts me not to tell and I don’t know her mother!) . They told me that unless she would come forward and speak to them about it… there was nothing they could do.

So I went on a several months long mission to build her up and get her to believe in herself. Stand up for what is right and teach her right from wrong. Filling her with “those are your mothers kids not yours.” “School work is first then sleep then help” It went on… I’m sure her mother would probably beat me up if she ever knew I existed!

It wasn’t long that she was stopping by to see me and repeating my words to me! It was wonderful! It looked like a weight was lifted off her shoulder’s and she was actually starting to believe that she could be someone other then a slave.

I should probably stop you all now and say I started working with her when she was 9!!! Now do you see why I am appalled at her mother?

She came to me several months ago and said that her mother was really scarring her. She loved her and just wanted her to love her back. It broke my heart to explain to her that sometime’s we are given parent’s that may not always know how to love in the way we want it. But that God will always put people in her life that will love her exactly as she needs. I told her what my own mother used to tell me “We may not be born with family member’s we need.. But we can always adopt them throughout our life.”

Over the course of the next few weeks.. When I got to see her she would tell me how scared she was and what her mother was doing. In fact, she started telling everyone she ran into! Her father later told me when I ran into him that she was very verbal about her mother’s ‘abuse’ towards her. So much so that she was now talking to her therapist and her therapist called CPS with major concerns.

Stop and say Yea!!!!!! A Doctor is going to stand up for this girl and help her! CPS would have to listen to a Doctor right?

Think again.

I got to see the little girl a few weeks ago, actually a few times. She told me that a man came out and spoke with her at her school and she did what everyone told her to do. Tell the truth. She told the man she was scared of her mother and what her mother recently had done to her. The man several weeks later made contact with her mother. Over the course of talking with the mother he determined and said this to the little girl: “you have a nice house and nice things, I think you need to behave and listen to your mother!”

I feel horrible! Her father is livid! Her therapist is outraged and I myself picked up the phone and called CPS myself (I felt like a busy body and I didn‘t care at that moment). I got right to the man that said this to her and I told him point blank “I wish this little girl would speak up and at least have an outburst once in her life! It would make me know she is at least a ‘normal’ kid”. I didn’t get through to him. He stopped talking to me. Ok Maybe I was a little to passionate?

I later found out from her father that he also called. He found out that not only her therapist but 2 other people called in the same week on her mother (no I wasn‘t one of them). The man determined that the girl was lying as the mother said and closed the case. The father was devastated, he knew the mother’s history and the man wouldn‘t even give him the time of day.

The last few time’s I got to have the little girl come and visit I could barely even tell it was her. She looks so sad. She barely smiles and she no longer talks. It breaks my heart! CPS told me what she needed to do and when she finally got the courage to do it they told her mother and didn’t believe her!

I spoke with her father last week.. He said she isn't the same with him and not talking, also. She did tell her sister that her mother is paying her to keep quiet. That if the man comes back to the house, that she will be in big trouble and never see her brothers again. I also heard that she had to apologize to everyone she talked to about her mother (with her mother standing next to her) that she had lied about it all!

I looked at her last week and in front of everyone in the room (I was a guest with their family, we all knew and she knew we knew) I looked at her sitting quietly on the couch. I could see in her eyes she was full of shame. Unneeded and undeserved shame. I blurted it out! “Sweetie? I believe you!” She looked at me with terror in her eye’s that I spoke about it again but out loud! I continued “From what others have said of your mother I know they believe you to. Hold your head up high honey and your shoulder’s back. I believe you!“ Then everyone in the room looked at me then her and seeing her face all individually said the same words! ’They believed her!’

You should have seen her face. Her body exhaled and her beautiful smile returned. She learned that day that while her mother is trying to make her into a liar…. Her father and his family and I all believed her!

Later that day as I said I needed to leave and go home to write.. Yes I am still trying to write.. She came up to me and asked me… ‘someday will you write my story?’ I just wanted to cry! She is an excellent writer herself. I bent down and told her ‘while I would love to, I think God is calling for you to write it all on your own sweetie! Someday, you could be famous and help kids just like you!’

Shame on CPS for not protecting a young child after she comes out with what is really going on! Shame on them for not listening to the Doctor as what is really happening!!!! Shame on them!!!!

I am not fit for the public - Dispatcher

2010-06-16T11:35:00.000-07:00

Dear Citizen’s out in the Public

After being yelled at with non stop calls I was very glad to not get the mandatory overtime at work that was being passed out like candy. I was even a little elated when I saw the weather outside and did not have to actually wear the little sweater I brought to work that morning.

So what happened between then and now? This short time period from my elation to leave the snake pit and enjoy peace and tranquility in the world?? More or less.. to be honest what happened in the last 60 minutes?

Well for one, I was short on gas. As I pull into the pump to wait in line.. I realize where my gas card is. I left it in the Officer’s vehicle!! And without the special card... I get no gas! They only take their special card! For those of you that pay under 3.00 a gallon for gas…Your blessed!!!

After fighting for a space at another gas station to fill my car up I was met with road construction that allowed me to wait through several lights before someone would be nice enough to let me in the lane. (Thank you!)

Then I couldn’t find the makeup brush I needed at target. You have been out of them for 2 months now!! I know I check every time I come in here!

Then I go to stop by See’s Yes the candy store… I need it! They were closed the last 2 times I stopped by for a treat. Wow..the line.. And no parking.. Great..

Then as I rush to my pedicure appointment I am met with a man that is intent on moving over to a lane that is full of traffic and won't let him in. DUDE PICK YOUR LANE’S IN ADVANCE. Especially this intersection that is known for long long lines!! Instead I get to be stopped in the middle lane with traffic wizzing by me.. While I wait for someone to let him in cause he isn’t moving over. I pray for people behind me to pay attention.. and curse the man in front of me at the same time. I am not proud of what comes out of my mouth..I am greatful however, he can not hear me. Oh my!! I hope he can't hear me!!!!!!!!!!

Finally, as I am chanting 'I am not fit for being in public' (over and over)..I pull into the parking lot and attempt to pull into a slot. Before I can even get in the space…the car coming towards me swerves around me and nearly hits me. DUDE PATIENCE!!! What every happened to ladies first?

So now, I am sitting in the chair.. Set it to massage ALL the area’s while the best pedicurist take’s care of my toe’s!

Ok..This guy that does my toes each month… Has a way of melting every bad thing that the citizens do to me! So Public.. Your lucky he exists!!

He asks me what color I want them. My mind is blank.. I look at him pleading 'Please don't make me make anymore decisions today! I've made enough for everyone else! He chooses!! Bless him!! Bless him!! Bless him!!!

Renting A Stolen Car - Dispatcher

2010-06-12T11:01:00.000-07:00

Dear rental company,

Please understand that it is not nice, nor safe, to rent out a vehicle that is reported as stolen. Your customer could very well be pulled over and laid out on the ground, held at gun point just for renting from your company!

So let’s make wise choices, if you report a car stolen, and it is returned, hold off on renting it till we respond out to remove it from the system. We have no idea it was returned. We still think the mean bad guy is driving it!

Sincerely yours,

Dispatcher

Relay’s - Dispatcher

2010-06-08T10:07:00.000-07:00

No I’m not talking about a running race… or maybe I am.

Relay Service is for those that are deaf or can not talk. they can sign or type into a special machine and the person on the other end calls us and 'relays' what that person is saying. They can be frustrating calls... even more so then translation calls. You have to wait for the special 'GA' to be said and then its your turn. Remember to say the 'GA' when you're done so they can start talking.

The callers usually like to ramble on about what they feel is necessary while we have to wait to ask what kind of vehicle the suspects just left in. So....

How come I can be interrupted during a relay service.. But I am rudely corrected and hushed when I attempt to interrupt?

And Dude!!!! I so type faster then you!!! And if you get relief and get to switch off.. I wanna switch off also!!!! I gotta pee!!!!

And furthermore, it was not a purse snatch!!! It was a theft of purse! There is a difference!

And, it shouldn't have taken me over an hour to get that out of you two!!!

Word is Prediphile - Officer

2010-06-06T08:20:00.000-07:00

The word for today boys and girls is Prediphile. I became acquainted with this word while taking a report. It's actually a catchy little word with a dual meaning. I like it. It's meaning is simply a combination of the words predator and pedophile. To use it in a sentence one would simply state "that mo fo is a prediphile" as my reporting party said.

You've just been edjumacated by the Officer!

Also see Ebonics 101.

M is for Monkey - Dispatcher

2010-06-04T10:02:00.000-07:00

I often think someone needs to study why people choose the words they do when associating them to specific letters. Like a master’s thesis for a psyche class?

M is for monkey, money, man, meat, military
K is for king, kite, killer
A is for Apple, Angie, angel
S is for Stereo, soda, Starbucks
C is for camera, candy, corn, cat
G is for good, great, gear, George, gun, gum

I often wonder if the words you give me mean something. For instance, a man that give’s me all female names when reading a license plate to me, does that mean he is single and girl crazy, or a womanizer?

Or a woman that is giving me all words that start with candy .. Does that mean they have a sweet tooth and or possibly hungry?

Or the guy that calls in giving me all the names of type of meat’s and meat cuts, or beer’s, are they just really hungry? Or when they give me fruit’s and vegi’s are they vegetarian’s?

I’m really serious someone needs to study this phenomenon! Why do people pick the words they do to associate them with the letters that we are talking about?

Check Dispatcher's Welfare - Dispatcher

2010-06-01T09:55:00.000-07:00

Please check welfare of dispatcher. Overworked, tired and stressed! Ordered back and feared of more cutbacks to come and talk of officers to take over their jobs.

Or just send chocolate!!

Oh wait.. She would have to workout to much to get rid of the chocolate weight!

Disregard!!! Back to square one!

Shuck A Child - Dispatcher

2010-05-28T09:48:00.000-07:00

Term: Shuck a child

shuck

shuck [shuk]
n (plural shucks)
1. outer covering of grain or fruit: the husk, pod, or shell of something such as a nut, pea, or ear of corn
2. oyster or clam shell: the shell of a clam or oyster

or shucks, npl
something with little value: something of little or no value (dated informal)

vt (past and past participle shucked, present participle shuck·ing, 3rd person present singular shucks)
1. take something from husk: to remove the husk, pod, or shell from something
2. get rid of something: to get rid of or remove something or throw something off (informal)

Does not mean: 1. To peel a child like a ear of corn as in shucking corn. 2. To toss a child like across a room. 3. To pick up a child and violently shake them, possibly causing damage.

It does mean: To Shake a child - In this case, not violently, and with no force, but to pick up the child and hold as if to comfort them and rock them to console them while crying.

So, to shuck a child could mean to comfort a child! And to answer your question ma'am, no we do not respond out to that, and good luck calling Child Protection!

I can never say it enough.. ENUNCIATE! Which means: 1. vti speak clearly: to pronounce something distinctly

Time to Work People - Dispatcher

2010-05-24T09:40:00.000-07:00

I make up 17 calls to your 7 and you over there.. Your 10... I’m not seeing how this is fare.. Especially since I saw #7 in the hallway talking to a group of officer’s and detective’s for over 10 minutes. I checked, you weren’t on break. Get back to work people, I can’t do my share of the calls and #7 combined with my usually picking up the slack of #10!!!

And there goes #10.. Leaving the room again! Where does she go? Wait… I don’t want to know!!!

The Winner Is!!! - Dispatcher

2010-05-20T17:20:00.000-07:00

Printing out all the listed followers.... and going down.. writing a number next to them... Then putting the range into a random number generator....It determined the winner to be.....

Triggerpull

Congraluations!!!! We sent you an email! Please reply to it with how to send you the prize!

I just want to thank TNT and Southland for supplying the DVD of Southland Season One for our fans! It's really been fun! Not to mention the show is addicting!

OK, you know it's addicting when you relieve a midnighter and she complains to you about how she has to go home and thanks to me watch the latest episode (it was a few weeks ago) before she can EVEN go to bed. Now that's saying something! You know, I think she even gave me the evil eye! Hmmm.. :-) I'm all fine with it!

Talk to you soon.. Congratulation's Triggerpull!
Dispatcher and Officer

Contest ends tomorrow!!! - Dispatcher

2010-05-19T15:13:00.000-07:00

Here's the warning... make sure you show up as a follower. Tomorrow I will be counting and using a random number generator to find the winner. I'll post the winner's handle name on the blog with how to contact me ( that is if I don't find you first).

TNT---We really like doing this!!! Hint hint.....

Dispatcher

Pushing Button's - Dispatcher

2010-05-15T10:56:00.000-07:00

Dear Caller (That is to cheap to call 411 that you have to call my non-emergency line),

I know I'm not your mother but I feel I must stress to you how rude your actions were last night! You see, what you really needed was to call 411 for the number you were looking for. However, since you called my number and I want to desperately please all my caller's (except for the one's that are using me to 'please' themselves Gross!!) I took it upon myself to look for the number for you. That and I don't want to be taken into the supervisor's office and told how rude I was, when I was not. I have giving out that number to several people before and will continue to do so, so let's not be worried about that.

What I do want to bring to your attention - No not the fact that you always call and never have a pen and paper handy for the number you knew you were calling for. I want you to understand how rude and down right mean it is for you to 'punch in' the number I give you directly into the phone we are presently talking on!!

It hurts!!!! As my co-workers heard me screaming in pain as I literally and swiftly ripped out the earpiece that was nestled directly into my ear canal, let me just reiterate - IT HURTS!!!

I know I'm 'customer service' but seriously there needs to be a line that is drawn shouldn't there be? I asked you to stop, told you it wasn't nice and please don't do it again. I asked you to get a pen and paper and even though there were 911 calls holding I was willing to stay on the phone while you got it, so I could give you the number. But you insisted on again punching the number's into the phone.

Really??? I have told you not to several time's. I asked you to write it down.. and not punch it into the phone and even though you tell me yes you understand, you again start to punch them in the phone. This is why I told you I was hanging up!

I'm not proud of my self for hanging up on you sir. I know you needed the number and I was trying to help you, really I was. But you need to help me. I need my hearing to continue to work at my job. I am extremely careful with my hearing as most of my seasoned co-workers are going deaf (I know this because they have the radio volume turned up to a eardrum breaking level when I relieve them).

Just so you know, after I hung up, I marched myself into the supervisor's office to 'tattle' on myself. With my ear still ringing a high pitch sound (which is a bad sign) I learned that I should have asked you if there was someone else I could have given the information to. I should have known. There is always something else I could have done, even when I felt I had done everything I could. Heavy sigh!!

Just once, I want a supervisor that stands up for me, and tell me 'Dispatcher, you did everything you could do. Your personal safety (hearing, mental status and such) should be top priority so you can help the citizen's to the best of your ability! Don't allow the citizen's to abuse you!'

I know the last sentence was a pipe dream! But seriously! Be on my side just once, please!! And sir, you can call 1-800-Free-411 and get the same number for Free! I think they will even text it to you so you can keep it forever!

Sincerely yours,
Dispatcher

The smell of a false call! - Dispatcher

2010-05-09T14:47:00.000-07:00

I remember when I first started dispatching and learning the ropes. I thought I would never be able to hear what my trainers were hearing. I would never catch on to what was really going on. Let me just say:

BOY WAS I WRONG!!!!

Today, it was call after call of 'hot' calls. Gun's and knives and drive-by's oh my! Some (I wish all) were ending up being stupid calls that officer's were unable to locate and so on.

It was when this call came in that I just felt something was off. The caller was calmer then normal for a kid calling saying his friend was just shot a few ago. He gave me wrong everything, but played the call good. What he didn't know was that the whole time I was entering the call I was not just putting what he was 'saying' in the call, but what he wasn't saying also.

For instance, he was saying his friend was shot, but dispatcher is hearing no commotion in the background. Or he was giving me an address but it was a bad address. He was giving me a description of the driver of the vehicle, but he also gave me the color of pants he was wearing.

Pants? It was when I stopped and asked him how he saw the driver was wearing pants that he paused a moment saying they 'all' got out of the vehicle and shot stuff up and then got back in and drove off.

I'm not buying it. He is way to calm. He is slightly stirred, but not shaken enough to make a margarita if you get my drift.

So those non verbal cue's went into the call! In the end I had a well written call with great bogus descriptions and Police Fire and Ambulance all out at the location looking for this victim that was shot.

What didn't sit well with me.. was exactly that however. I had Police, Fire and Ambulance all out at the location looking for a victim that was shot.

What do I mean by that? Officer's and Dispatcher's all know what I mean. It just doesn't sit well with me having my family out in a large area looking for someone knowing that someone called specifically for us to go looking in the area..

Someone else in that call had the upper hand/advantage! That same person that hung up the phone on me before I could get everything I wanted to get, when he saw we were in the area. Unable to call back with what little info I had..... My notes and dispatcher ear was all I had to go on....

How does a false call really smell? --- they stink!

For all the woman in this world! - Dispatcher

2010-05-05T18:01:00.001-07:00

There are time's I just sit here and feel the need to lift up all the beautiful women in the world! That's to all of you young ladies also! You are truly beautiful. Last year when this song came out we were driving out to a small town to have dinner with a bunch of our friends. We listen to KLove (A christian radio station across the nation) and I'm glad I wasn't driving! I burst into tears!

First let me say this man wrote the song for his wife. He said on the radio that he looked at his wife and saw that she was so beautiful! But she never quite seemed to believe him. Or she tore herself apart. My Officer tells me all the time I am beautiful, but I never used to believe him. Maybe that's from the years I was told I was ugly and lucky to be with the man I was with! Whatever the reason, the tears were flowing when I heard this song, because I finally believed my husband.

I am beautiful! You are also! (Yes I am speaking to you!!!)

Watch the video - You will never look at another commercial or photo shoot the same ever again!

Found it!!! Jonny Diaz.. More Beautiful you! Interesting how it was so simple just now.. (Under 30 seconds.. and yesterday took me forever and I was late... Hmmmm Can you spell... S-A-T-A-N??)
I'm last for bible study! Pray I don't get a ticket on the way!

Can I Have A Beer While I Wait? - Dispatcher

2010-05-01T15:14:00.000-07:00

You know, there are times when your talking to someone and you can just tell they are waisted beyond belief!

Today was no different with the caller I had. He was calling about having just got into an altercation (by 'just' he means 2 days ago). He wasn't going to tell me who it was that beat him up (he said 'that's none of you (bleeping) business'). To top it off with he wanted an ambulance to provide him with a ride (and from the sounds of it some nice drugs to go with the ride).

I have the call put in and officers en route to the call and he is now talking with the ambulance people when low and behold he asks them "Can I have a beer while I wait?"

You could hear the ambulance dispatcher take a double take as she attempted to comprehend what she had just heard. "No sir, you can not." She continues with her questioning and then does her standard line just before she hangs up. "Do not have anything to eat or drink, it might cause problems for the doctors. We are on our way, call back on 911 if the situation gets worse before we get there." then follows it up without missing a step "And yes sir that mean no beer either!"

Gotta love it! But wait, it gets even better! Just as I am ready to disconnect I hear someone walking in the place our caller is at. You hear the door open and a cheery voice call out "Hello there sir!" It was MY OFFICER!!! I look up at the call and sure enough he was on it!

The line went dead and I just sat there for a moment (Ok, I sent him a text 'Awe, I just heard you say hello!!'). He is always so chipper!

Contest

2010-04-27T13:28:00.000-07:00

A few posts ago I talked about having another contest! Well, we are! How exciting huh?

But for this one, we decided that you had to do nothing at all to enter. Sometime on or after May 20th we will pick at random one of our followers!

That’s it! 1 lucky follower of our blog will win A DVD set of Season One of Southland! So if you were ever thinking of following us and just never got around to it... Now is the time!

It's very easy to enter, make sure you show up as a follower and sit back and relax. We will announce who won on our blog and we will make arrangement to mail it out to you! That simple!

Isn't that just to good to be true? We thought so... and we would like to thanks TNT/Southland for supplying the prize and being so wonderful to our reader’s.

Happy reading!
Dispatcher

(Supplied by The SouthLAnd Team at TNT)

Working Under Pretty Much Bites - Dispatcher

2010-04-20T08:11:00.000-07:00

We are adjusting as best we can to the lack of personnel that we have these days. Everything is changing on a day to day basis. Lets be honest, hour by hour, if even that long!

We are armed with our memo’s in hand and take each call making sure we check for the most up to date way of handling. We get messages with changes and we try to remember them for the next time we get a call that entails that info. However, we forget, so we send messages around to our co-workers ‘how are we handling this call now?’ it’s nerve wracking, but we are holding up ok in hopes the citizen’s don’t get upset and start complaining.

We are told not to tell the citizen to call and complain to the publicly elected official that made all these changes. We are supposed to hold our head high and do the best job we can. I will admit there have been time’s I have wanted to tell the person that is on the line yelling at me about how worthless we are, to go direct his anger towards the person that laid off all my co-workers! But I don’t, mainly because I do what I’m told to do but mostly because I don’t fight dirty like that. My other co-workers however, don’t hesitate to tell them who to blame and what number to call.

I feel bad for the citizens that call to get their vehicles or copies of reports. They only have a few hours a day to do that. If you come down here you will be met with a line that starts to form in the morning. They stand outside in the cold for several hours waiting for the only building that can help them to open. If they try to call in to get help instead, they are met with a new phone tree. The phones go to an automatic phone system that tells you all these numbers you can call. But if you want to speak to the people that used to answer the number you just called., you have to hang up and dial another number at the very end of the long message. Once you dial that number you are met with another phone tree system giving you more options that you have to listen to. It’s at the end of that message that you get the final phone number to hang up and call to try to get a hold of the people that used to answer the first number you used to call. This is were you stay on hold and wait for someone to answer. Since they laid off over half of this department, plan to wait awhile.

I got stuck in the phone tree from hell today! Even the numbers they are giving us to call are not working or correct numbers! So most of the citizens are calling in directly to the dispatch center and they call back mad when we send them to the phone tree system. I have to admit I apologize and warn them to listen carefully with a pen and paper ready. I just hate the automatic systems! I want a person to answer the phone when someone calls. I do however, continue to follow policy! With the exception I bypass the first phone tree (if I know they really need that department). Super said I could!

The overtime is abundant. It’s mandatory and we all are doing it. We went from having barely any overtime to 19 people near daily being ordered to stay for overtime. So can you please tell me we are not affected by the people laid off?

But right now? I am tired and I’m turning my phone ringer off, and not answering the phone for the next few days! I’m sure my friends will understand! Heaven help the telemarketer that gets through!

I’m just grateful I have Google voice all set up! I won’t miss a thing!

Batter Up - Officer

2010-04-15T05:18:00.000-07:00

We have had a recent spate in homicides using baseball bats. Bludgeoning I guess you could label them. Well, lets just say Joe Murder is batting .400 for you baseball fans. Now being beaten to death by a Louisville Slugger is probably not even in my top 10 ways of how I would want to die, and the stories themselves are sad an have few redeeming qualities worth recounting.

Until this one.

A call came in regarding a man wheeling a "body" in a shopping cart to a dumpster. Updates were coming in that the man was undressing the body and trying to get it into a dumpster. Officers responded to this call with a lot of skepticism. Thoughts of "its a mannequin", "it's gotta be a joke", "who the hell would sit there and watch if it were real?" and those sort of things. Well, when the first officer arrived, and saw first the bloody body, and then the man try to run, half drunk, only to trip and be taken into custody, it wasn't a joke anymore.

Turns out, this was the end of Billie Bob. Billie Bob and his half brother Bubba lived in this modular... oh who am I kidding, it was a trailer! They were drunk all the time, constantly fighting, and having the law called on them. So Bubba had killed him Billie Bob dead. With a baseball bat. Then he loaded him into the shopping cart so as he didn't stink up the place any worse (and believe me it stunk) and took him over to the dumpster to dispose of him, only he couldn't lift him, so he asked our Mr. Reporting Party, who was out for an early morning walk, if he would assist him in putting ol' Billie Bob in that thar dumpster. The Reporting Party told him, "yeah, sure, let me go get some gloves", and went and called the police instead. When you asked Bubba why he kilt ol' Billie Bob, he just smiled and said, "I finally had enough". We couldn't get him to give up anymore, but there were a lot of speculations as to why he done it.

Dear Heavenly Father -Dispatcher

2010-04-12T08:39:00.000-07:00

Dear Heavenly Father,

Please help me today as I finish out my shift! I have 5 hours left and I pray that you guard my ears and conceal them from being able to hear the dispatcher next to me.

Please cover and guard them so they won’t hear her yelling at the citizen’s and questioning them like they are criminal’s. Keep my mind busy so I won’t fly off the handle at yell at her the same way she yells at your children.

Please Lord, please, have the callers call back and get me!! Let me help them even though I know they will be mad and take it out on me! Please let me show them that our department is not like her!

And Lord, last week, when she yelled at the man for the call he was trying to get assistance with and she called him a liar and then called his ex wife and then put them on a three-way call and I could hear her yelling and berating him while on the line with his ex-wife over their child, please don’t let her get any of those calls today. Give me her calls I will gladly take her share! Just protect our citizen’s and departments reputation above all!

I consider it a blessing that I rarely have to work with her and I am grateful that she is rarely in her seat. Please help her find a job that she can love and thrive in! Help her discover how she can be the best person that she can be. Be there for her to help her through it all! And please, keep all the officers away from her, let them see exactly who she is and to guard themselves from her.

Your Servant,
Dispatcher

Edjumacated Offisas - Officer

2010-04-09T05:14:00.000-07:00

I have been off seeking my degree, as that is what they tell me I should be doing. My agency advocates education very much. And to be quite honest, I abhor education. Not training mind you. I am trainings biggest advocate. I eat, sleep, and breathe good strong hard training. Learning something new every day and staying one step ahead in your job and safety. One step ahead of the next dirt bag to cross your path. But, education, not so much.

Let me explain.

In my agency, I have been a training officer since the early part of the last decade. Up till my recent foray into the educational system, I basically had a lot of job training and very specific schooling to enable to me to do my job. I have seen a lot in my 20 years in emergency services. But until recently, it was rare that the educated, read degree holding applicants, came in droves to apply for law enforcement positions.

I am going to digress for a moment and stand on a small soap box. Don't worry, the dispatcher will push me off it quick enough. It seems to me from speaking to a lot of these applicants, that the high school teachers and as of late, listening to my youngest, elementary school teachers, are steering ALL of the kids to go to college and get degrees. Another thing that is happening is the discouragement by the teachers to seek a trade school or enter the military. The teachers seem to sell it to the kids as being beneath the kids to go to a trade school or the military. At the same time, many parents are "helicopter" parents and coddling the young whipper snappers until they are in their mid 20's, causing a stunted maturing of our youth. Many of our applicants are straight out college, and have no real life experience or maturity. Sure, they are smart as a whip, but common sense is a rare virtue, and street smarts is almost non-existent in these kids whose minds are full of mush. We are going to shove these kids into the barrios against kids raised all their life in the street for a trial by fire? Doesn't sound like real good odds to me. Most of our applicants have never even been in a knock down, drag out fight, and now they may just have to fight for their lives.

So off my soap box and back to my point. We get a lot of really smart educated young men and women. God bless those kids. But I have noticed that the smart kids have a harder time comprehending our job. And the training program, which is designed to be about 17 weeks averages 35 weeks and I have seen several go well into the 70 week range (about a year and a half for those who missed it), even on their second attempt to pass the program. But give me a kid who has come from the military, or from working for a living and having to support themselves and possibly a young family. They generally pass the program in 20 weeks.

Officers who come to us from the colleges, having never worked a real job, or been in the military, and have the college degrees come to the agency with their minds full of sociology and psychology, strong liberal opinions on what the government should do to help all of these people, and no common sense or life experience. In my taking of Administration of Justice courses for my degree, I have to choke down all the communist puke and drivel put forth by some of my professors just to get through the class. It makes me want to grab them and leave them in the middle of a gangster party and let them socialize their way out... Oh, sorry, I drifted into fantasy. But seriously. Just going through the courses I am fully aware of the indoctrination our youth go through. And to be honest, I have 6 classes left, and so far, there was only one class I feel I learned anything useful. My math classes. How politicized can math be if you don't do statistics. Hahahahaha. Mark Twain once said, "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."

Let me give 2 cases in point. I had a young man, 25ish, had 2 bachelor degrees (psychology and English). He was fluent in 3 languages. He wanted to be a cop so bad. He could not pass the program. He went well over a year and a half. He froze up whenever people were becoming aggressive. I suggested he go into counseling or social services. He was geared like that.

I had another guy who didn't make the grade. Had an Ivy League education, 30s, and had only worked for the government bureaucracy and was probably lawyer material. He was a jerk too, but his attitude had nothing to do with his failure to pass the program. He did not understand, nor could he deal with the streets or officer safety.

Ok, to sum it up, we need people in our society to do all the things that the college educated feel is beneath them. Like your mechanic, your dry cleaner, and your waiter or cook at your favorite restaurant. We as police officers need to rethink "education" in our pursuit of professionalism. Just the rambling thoughts of an officer.

Knock.... knock... (for the wives) -Dispatcher

2010-04-07T16:15:00.000-07:00

Hello? (As I peer around the monitor)

Is anybody there? (hey I see our cat do it, like she's looking for the fish from the screen saver to come back on! It's cute, but you may have to have been there.)

I'm going to come right out and admit to you after the hugging of the officer post.... It's been really hard to get back into the swing of posting.. To be honest I just wanted to sit and hug on my Officer forever. Being the wife of an Officer there is a mind set that goes with that position.

Fellow Wives we need to be honest. OK, I do!! We know that our man (or woman) may not come home after shift. It's a fear of ours that we purposely work through and fill with to do lists and appointments and crafts! We keep ourselves busy or drug ourselves with Tylenol PM so we can sleep! (Tylenol I love you!!). It's what we signed on for when we married the love of our life! I personally would have it no other way. My Officer is doing what he was made by God to do. I see and know that in my soul! But we have to be honest with ourselves (I do) that it's a fear that is easier to handle when each day passes and our lovers walk through the door. But when the reality hits us square in the face, when we turn on the TV and see the number of Officer's that are being targeted and gunned down - It's devastating for a wife to see! It is fear that can be for some - debilitating if you don't work through it and claim it for what it really is! I for one, when I hear my Officer's car drive down the driveway each day my heart leaps and I relax! He is home! He is safe! Lord thank you He is ours to care for now!

Fear is from Satan. Satan would love for us to be so afraid that we can't care for ourselves, let alone the man that is going out and fighting in God's army on a daily basis! How sneaky he thinks he is being, snake like even! He creates the rifts in our relationship's if were not careful and takes great pride in making us drift apart. If you ever get a chance read Lord Foulgrin's Letters by Randy Alcorn amazon has it here please do so. I listened to it on tape and it made my skin crawl! It will show you just how Satan is trying to attack our Officer's through us and any means he can get to.

God made us with all the emotion's, but fear is directly from Satan. God wants us to trust Him and when we are scared He loves to see us lay it at His feet to handle. To give to Him all our worries and fears and trust in Him enough that he will handle it.

I mean seriously, who am I to think I can do a better job then Him! Have you ever read the book of Nahum? The power that God has and love for his children is awe inspiring.

^1:3 The LORD is slow to anger and great in power;
the LORD will not leave the guilty unpunished.
His way is in the whirlwind and the storm,
and clouds are the dust of his feet.

The entire book is about the wrath of God and how (I'll paraphrase) if you touch one hair on my child's (or Officer's) head I will pummel you like ground up wheat!!! And don't mistake that He can't or won't do that. He has every hair on our heads numbered! (God I really wanted the 7 that my friends kid ripped out last week! :-) )

⁷ The LORD is good,

a refuge in times of trouble.
He cares for those who trust in him,

⁸ but with an overwhelming flood
he will make an end of Nineveh ;
he will pursue his foes into darkness.

So God, I take refuge in you! I trust You to care for my Officer and take care of me! I lay my fears at your feet and pour out my devotion and love to you! I vow to you that we will work as a team you and I! I will sew on his patches, love him and create a home that he can rest and seek Your love in.

But just so you know, so we are totally clear! I will be at your heels following you as you pursue the foes into darkness that ever hurt my Officer!

I just can't end this here!!! We have a contest coming up! I'm just going to say it was meant to be from God. Seriously! When we announce it and tell you what happened you will laugh and say 'yep she was right.. meant by God!'

And I'm thinking all of March should be Hug your Officer month.. But since I did hug him most all of March.. Maybe we could add all of April also! (Yes we are one of those sickly couples you see kissing in line!) Hahaha...

Not So Funny!! Really???? - Dispatcher

2010-04-01T14:24:00.000-07:00

OK.. Google changing their name to Topeka... that was funny! At 0400 hrs when I logged on to hunt someone down.. and stopped to take a double take and see the Google logo changed to Topeka!

That was funny!!

Having someone call in that their adult child sent them a text that they were being held against their will by their spouse - as the parent flies across town on line with a 911 operator and officers are rolling from all over the city to respond, set up on the call, prepare for the worst as they are told their are multiple weapons in the house..... only to find out... It's a joke!

No, that is not funny.

and...

Texting your girlfriend that a neighbor called you saying that thugs were just seen breaking into your house as they know you are out of town.. and now speeding back in to town.. as you call 911 and your father is en route to your house also...

This also.. is not funny!!!!!

April Fool's has always been and will always be my second least liked holiday! I hate holiday's that make it 'OK' for people to be mean and make fun of others!

We should be loving each other rather then being mean! Think twice before you send those text's you think are so 'funny'. Cause as you were standing outside your house, laughing at your parents that were arriving frantically at your house.. Did you know there were 5 officer's with guns drawn pointed directly at you?

Don't flinch dude!

It's dangerous to play games like this! Dangerous for you! and dangerous for every citizen that was on the road while your parent was flying across town.

And don't even think for an instant little sir or ma'am sending the text that you can't be tracked down. Because I single handily found several of you and I heard the surprise in your voice when you answered your work phone and I introduced myself and told you where I worked (yes, I heard you gasp) and then transferred you to the Officer! (where after he told you the punishment you burst into sobs!) I personally made it my mission to find you!!!!!

I even skipped lunch! So for now.. I'm off to eat! I'm starving thanks to you!

Hug Your Officer - Dispatcher

2010-03-06T18:59:00.000-08:00

I think we should all take a moment and just hug our Officer's. Now, just the one's that you are married to. Lord knows there are enough rumors going around... Lets not start anymore!

But seriously, the job is hard. The citizen's are mean. The economy is bad and bad people are getting desperate and dangerous! I think all of us who are married to a Law Enforcement Officer just needs to put our stuff down. Take a step towards the front door and as our Officer come's thru the door give them a big hug!!!

You know the kind.

The kind where you don't let go. Where while they need to get undressed they drag you with them to the room. Your arms wrapped around their neck your mouth whispering in their ear how much you missed them and love and respect them and could never live without them and just so blessed they came home to YOU IN ONE PIECE!!!

They ask you what the good smell is in the house and you whisper without skipping a beat that you made their favorite bread, and breakfast muffins, and boiled them eggs for lunch tomorrow and your still holding on to him.

I know, you think I am crazy! Nuts and certifiable and maybe I am.

Ok, I am.

I am totally crazy for this man, my Officer, that I love and adore and cherish. Every moment I get with him is a gift from God! I know this... I also know that satan wouldn't hesitate to rip him from me. So I am declaring today, March 6th, 'Hug Your Officer Day!' (There Hallmark take off with that one!)

As for me... I am taking a few weeks break while I hug (stalk) my Officer (I'm not joking cause I know he never backs away from a hug, and he gave me permission to stalk him a few weeks ago!). I will post in a few.. I have a ton to tell you... But it will all have to wait.

For now, nothing else matters, hug and kiss your Officer. Close your eyes and breath in his smell. The one that smells of everything he was involved in for the day. The chase he had, the weird person he helped and the dog he rescued. Breath it all in and remember, He is doing what He loves and what God made him to do! He is fighting a fight that God created him to fight! He is a warrior on a team that we already knows wins in the end!

Go hug your Officer!!!

God is so proud of you all!!!!!
Bless you Bless you Bless you for all that you do!!!!
and Thank You!!

SouthLAnd Contest Winner!!!! - Officer

2010-03-05T17:06:00.000-08:00

We received many good entries, and enjoyed all of your stories very much. Thank you so much. We chose the below winner submitted by Mrs. Fuzz. Congratulations! We sent you an email. Get back ASAP so the SouthLAnd TNT people can send you your prize.

"You could pretty much take your pick from any of the Calamity Jane stories (or CJ as we like to refer to her as) I posted. She was the cadet that went to the academy with my husband, HF, and did some really outlandish things. This is one of my favorite little stories. It's short and sweet. :)

At the academy, one of the instructors was demonstrating an arrest control technique. CJ volunteered to have the technique done to her in front of the class. He was demonstrating a cross- face hair pull takedown. After he executed the maneuver, she got up and slapped him. Everyone in the class held their breath as they all thought the instructor was going to kill her. The instructor said, "Okay. Everybody gets one. That's yours."

Then there was that time that she danced with a group of guys while in uniform and during FTO and she famously said, "I just have one rule guys. You can't touch my gun. You can touch me, but just don't touch m gun." That situation didn't get very far thankfully because of her FTO. . .

But you said just one story!

-Mrs. Fuzz"

I'm So Excited - Dispatcher

2010-02-28T07:59:00.000-08:00

I get excited over the small things... But this time.. it's well over 2 things that are all involved in 1 thing....

New Southland's on Tuesday!!!!

and..

The Contest ends the next day!!

We have been a little busy (understatement) with some things around here.. but looking forward to sitting down and finally getting to see the new season.

We got a little sneak however. The TNT/Southland people decided to send us a preview of the new season coming up..

Can I just say that is like waving crack in front of an addict that's going thru major withdrawals!!!

Or like a child sitting on the LA parking lot (translation - Freeway) waiting for hours (yes no exaggeration) to get to Disneyland!!!

We sat down.. Together, like always.. this show is a together show, and pressed play...

Ya, It's even better then last year!!! I was watching and as they're driving around I'm hearing their car rattle noises. The rattling noises were driving me nuts, then it dawned on me.. 'Oh my gosh they even got the sound of inside your patrol vehicle down to a T' Officer didn't respond to me. So I looked over and saw him. He was leaning over, mouth hanging open, frozen in his stance starring at the screen. I'm not even blinking!

The preview of the season stopped and after a few second's we climbed out from inside the screen and resumed our normal communications. Well, for awhile, the only words we could actually speak sounded like mumbling of 'oh my gosh I can't wait' and 'wow, wow wow really?'

Now, the only problem is Officer and I are currently on opposite days off.. So we either wait.. a long time.. Or one of us has to stay up way passed their bedtime!

You Pay Me For What I Know - Dispatcher

2010-02-24T08:13:00.000-08:00

I recently ran into someone that told me the following:

You do not pay me for what I do!

You pay me for what I know and how I know how to do it.

And you should pray you never need me!

Apparently this fireman uses this line when people complain to him that he just sits around at the station all day. Well, I am going to adopt it as my saying as well and I’m sharing it with you! I said it to a citizen the other day and it was instant change of attitude with the citizen as you could hear them thinking about and then realize ‘oh ya, I really want her there when I need it.. But I don’t want to need her!!!’

Southland Contest?? Yes!!! -Dispatcher

2010-02-19T09:31:00.001-08:00

It’s the show we all love. The one we watch and never miss an episode and the one that we all exclaim FINALLY Someone understands us and what we do!!

So it was quite exciting (and we jumped at the idea) when we were contacted by The SouthLAnd Team at TNT and they suggested that we have a contest. They will supply the prize and we can have fun with the contest! We thought our reader's could really have fun with this.

The Prize: Season 1 of SouthLAnd on DVD!!
(Supplied by The SouthLAnd Team at TNT) Lucky winner!

So since SouthLAnd literally has every kind of character type known to a police force and let me tell you they've got them down to a ‘T’ Officer decided on the following contest:

SouthLAnd is a realistic show full of many colorful characters, please take a moment to tell us about one of your colorful co-workers (past or present and no names please) and one of the more self defining stories about them for a chance to win. Please do not include any stories with pending litigation and the "statue limitations" has expired or any stories that will identify you or your agency.

Contest is open to all reader's (whether you follow us or not). All entries must be submitted through a comment on this post only. You may email them to ' Dispatcherandofficer (at) gmail (dot) com ' (replace the (at) with @ and (dot) for the .com), Subject line should read "SouthLAnd Contest", we will post them for you after taking out your name and contact info.

Contest ends March 3rd and we will post the winning entry on the blog!
and contact the winner by email!

And again... Thank you For bringing it back! Yes you do know drama!!!

Dear Parents (Mostly the Mother's) - Dispatcher,

2010-02-16T08:35:00.000-08:00

When you are calling 911 because your son or daughter at any age is not breathing or has shoved something up its nose or down its throat please remember the following:

1. We can not hear you when you are screaming.
2. We can not hear you when someone else in the room is screaming.
3. We are coming as fast as we can but we need you to help us with your child.
4. You have total permission to lose it… just put someone else on the line and leave the building!

When you call us we have certain things we need to clarify with you. We need to ask your address. While we see it on our screen and we already have the call made up we MUST confirm your address. The phone company is not always correct with your address and by law, we must confirm.

The person in the house that is screaming is causing us not to hear a word you are saying. Thus, it IS delaying help!

Don’t yell at me when I tell you to calm down, or endanger your child’s life by wasting time telling me I don’t know what you are going through either. When my daughter swallowed the penny at age 2 I did not freak out! I picked her up and drove her straight to the ER. Had she not been breathing as well as she was I would have called for an ambulance. I didn’t freak out till I was home and she was tucked into bed and I actually had the time to think! You don’t know the person on the other end and it doesn’t matter. All that matters is that that person you are talking to is trained for exactly the reason you are calling.

Remember you are the parent! As hard as it is you are in charge of the child. You don’t have a right to freak out on them. You must always stay in control! They are counting on you!

So take a deep breath, let it out slowly as your calling our number and when we come on the line just answer our questions.

Sincerely,
Dispatcher

Guns in church again - Officer

2010-02-15T19:10:00.000-08:00

Ok, we have talked about this before, and this is a perfect example of why I carry my gun to church. And I don't carry a little gun. I have come to the conclusion, in fact, it was yesterday during church, that I will need to carry more ammo or a higher capacity weapon even in church.

Google Richmond, CA church shooting. It occurred yesterday. Had difficulty with blogger, something has changed, it won't allow my to even paste the link, so I gotta figure it out, but, I digress. Yesterday on Valentines Day in New Gethsemane Church of God in Christ 3 hooded figures entered and were walking up and down the aisles among 100 parishioners, and then opened fire shooting 5 times, injuring a 14 year old boy and a 19 year old man.

Well, had an armed off duty police officer been present, something might have been different. Like the three not casually strolling the aisles, shooting people, and walking off. We have had some incidents at my church. Nothing too serious yet, but it happens. We have had church shootings in my city.

This is not the first attack on places of worship.

It will not be the last.

In fact, here is a list of just the most publicized attacks
on churches...

February 14, 2010 - Richmond, California - Three hooded men
walk into Gethsemane Church of God in Christ and opened
fire and then fled the scene, as the singing of the choir
was replaced by frightened screams. The two victims, a 14-
year-old boy and a 19-year-old man, were hospitalized.

March 8, 2009 - Maryville, Illinois - Suspect Terry Joe
Sedlacek, 27, of Troy, walks into the First Baptist Church,
and shoots pastor Fred Winters dead, point blank. Several
church members are injured by a knife in the struggle to
capture after the attack, The suspect also had stabbed
himself, but survived, when his gun jams.

July 27, 2008 - Knoxville, Tennessee - A gunman opens fire
in a church during a youth performance, killing two people
and injuring seven.

Dec. 9, 2007 - Colorado - Three people are killed and five
wounded in two shooting rampages, one at a missionary
school in suburban Denver and one at a church in Colorado
Springs. The gunman in the second incident is killed by a
guard.

May 20, 2007 - Moscow, Idaho - A standoff between police
and a suspect in the shootings of three people in a
Presbyterian Church ended with three dead, including one
police officer.

Aug. 12, 2007 - Neosho, Missouri - First Congregational
Church - 3 killed - Eiken Elam Saimon shot and killed the
pastor and two deacons and wounded five others.

May 21, 2006 - Baton Rouge, Louisiana - The Ministry of
Jesus Christ Church - 4 killed - The four at the church who
were shot were members of Erica Bell's family; she was
abducted and murdered elsewhere; Bell's mother, church
pastor Claudia Brown, was seriously wounded - Anthony Bell,
25, was the shooter.

Feb. 26, 2006 - Detroit, Michigan - Zion Hope Missionary
Baptist Church - 2 killed + shooter - Kevin L. Collins, who
reportedly went to the church looking for his girlfriend,
later killed himself.

April 9, 2005 - College Park, Georgia - A 27-year-old
airman died after being shot at a church, where he had once
worked as a security guard.

March 12, 2005 - Brookfield, Wisconsin - Living Church of
God - 7 killed + shooter - Terry Ratzmann opened fire on
the congregation, killing seven and wounding four before
taking his own life.

July 30, 2005 - College Park, Georgia - World Changers
Church International - shooter killed - Air Force Staff
Sgt. John Givens was shot five times by a police officer
after charging the officer, following violent behavior.

Dec. 17, 2004, Garden Grove, Calif.: A veteran musician at
the Crystal Cathedral shoots himself to death after a nine
-hour standoff.

Oct. 5, 2003 - Atlanta, Georgia - Turner Monumental AME
Church - 2 killed + shooter - Shelia Wilson walked into the
church while preparations are being made for service and
shot the pastor, her mother and then herself.

June 10, 2002 - Conception, Missouri - Benedictine
monastery - 2 killed + shooter - Lloyd Robert Jeffress shot
four monks in the monastery killing two and wounding two,
before killing himself.

March 12, 2002 - Lynbrook, New York - Our Lady of Peace
Catholic Church - 2 killed - Peter Troy, a former mental
patient, opens fire during Mass, killing the priest and a
parishioner. He later receives a life sentence.

May 18, 2001 - Hopkinsville, Kentucky - Greater Oak
Missionary Baptist Church - 2 killed - Frederick Radford
stood up in the middle of a revival service and began
shooting at his estranged wife, Nicole Radford, killing her
and a woman trying to help her.

Sept. 15, 1999 - Fort Worth, Texas - Wedgewood Baptist
Church - 7 killed + shooter - Larry Gene Ashbrook shot dead
seven people and injured a further seven at a concert by
Christian rock group Forty Days in Fort Worth, Texas before
killing himself.

April 15, 1999 - Salt Lake City, Utah - LDS Church Family
History Library - 2 killed + shooter - Sergei Babarin, 70,
with a history of mental illness, entered the library,
killed two people and wounded four others before he was
gunned down by police.

My question to you is: What will YOU do to prevent it from
happening in YOUR place of worship?

Stay safe.

Go to the Richmond Church Shooting Here

Here is a cell phone video..

Southland is Back!!! - Dispatcher

2010-02-12T11:16:00.000-08:00

Doing what we do for a living is very different from say.... being a banker! I don't know many bankers that could answer even one of my calls, let alone answer them on a daily basis! Not many people really understand why my Officer and I are like we are! Except, most of our reader's!

Let's be honest - We see and hear stuff every day that most of you only see in TV and movies! Yet, even what you see is mostly wrong or overly dramatized and it's just not accurate!

So last year when I saw a preview of a show about LA PD I was caught starring at the TV. I actually hit record on the Tivo to save the show just for that promo commercial, of which I later played for my Officer. We were both literally drooling! I immediately set up Tivo to record all the episode's.

We never missed a one! In fact, the show quickly became 'our night' Since we work shift work, we can't watch them live. So we wait, and wait, till we're both off together and plan the night we are going to air them! This is the type of show that my officer and I actually sit to watch (it's a rare thing). We are mesmerized and in awe through most all of the show. Now, some of you work for really small agencies, you know that we do not! We also live close to this area and let me tell you - It's almost like they made a show about us! Word for word we get those call's and ALL THE TIME!!! We even have those co-workers among us!!! For those that watch the show - Yes even 'him'.

Finally, People that watch this show will see just what we go through on a daily basis! Finally my family and friends will know why I'm not in the best mood or why I canceled our movie date with them. Finally, the citizen's will be able to understand why I'm a little short with them over their barking dog call they are reporting, because I just got off the phone with a man that was shot and dying and I had to keep him talking long enough for EMS and PD to find him!!!!! Finally the public knows what actually goes on and not the fluff and lies the news tries to pass off as truth!!

The season finale - We both cried! It was horrible. I remember sitting in my Officer's arms frozen as the credits rolled, mouths hanging open in pure disbelief!

Then we heard the show was canceled. NBC canceled our favorite show! The show that actually made us feel normal!!!!?? And we boycotted NBC! How dare they! We heard the rumor's and really - People if you couldn't handle the show then get over it! It is real life!! For us anyways! Watch and learn and lock your car doors!!!

Then, a few months ago I am surfing the net and run across an article on TNT picking up the show! I text my officer, posted it on facebook and logged on to TNT!!!! Yea Yea Yea!!! We have been waiting ever since for it to air.

Just yesterday we logged on to check out the site again and saw this promo for season 2!

I was playing the promo and I could hear my Officer running (Yes running!!!) down the hall. Ok, I had turned up the volume, to entice him. The show is kind of like shaking the cat food box saying here kitty kitty only officer talk for Here Officer Officer! I replayed it for him and again, we just stood here in front of the computer mouths hanging open frozen with excitement!!!!!! IT'S BACK AND IT'S GONNA BE EVEN BETTER THEN BEFORE!!!!! How could they do that??? How could they make a show even better when it was perfect to begin with? No clue, but in all honesty I'm not complaining one bit! I'm thanking my lucky stars TNT picked it up and once again we can feel a little more normal again. Officer walked out of the office, turned and looked at me and said "that show is definitely one we need to own on DVD". That my friends is him saying it's an awesome show that we will watch over and over again!!!! We just don't buy DVD's!

Our city is releasing inmate's every week! Crime is going up! Our cops are getting tired our work load is getting heavier, co-workers are getting laid off and we are getting tired! Season 2 promo gave me goosebumps as I watched it - could someone really understand and be able to portray what we in this city are now going through? We are not alone! Watch the promo my friends and think of us working in that maddening environment! Then send chocolate! Hee Hee Just kidding!

And TNT - From both of us - Thank you for grabbing this show and keeping it alive! We truly are grateful for the chance to have our 'real' work shown out there! Good and bad, we're human people and appreciate you picking up the torch. I personally would vote for an officer to be married to a dispatcher and their working triangle! If you need help with that story line.. I'm available to assist! :-) Ok how about at least a few flashes of the dispatch center? Or comment on how great a dispatcher did in finding the info they needed!!!?

Ok again, that's shameless!!! Hee Hee Hee

CPS - Dispatcher

2010-02-10T08:00:00.000-08:00

(warning - To all mothers.. This post may anger you!)

Here in our department we get a lot of calls from people who are having custody issues. Some are just bickering and you have to spell out what the law can and can’t do and some are just get people that need to get-a-long. Every once-in-a-while you get a call and your soul is just screaming MAKE UP A CALL SOMETHING ISN’T RIGHT! And you do.

So I get a call from a female saying that her fiancé, who is now in jail, gave her a notarized piece of paper giving her the right to pick up and care for his 3 year old little boy. She went on to say (I’m giving you the short version - she talked in circles) that this little boys mother disowned him when he was born and was out of the picture. When her fiancé was put in jail, this couple that now has the child started taking care of him and they smoked. Her and her fiancé didn’t think a smoking home was fit for the child since the child had asthma so she wanted to pick him up.

Now, all that may be well and good in her mind. But my mind was reeling with - is that boy ok? Who is the legal caregiver and I’m not just going to let this kid be pushed around from home to home! Notary? My butt! I confirmed there was no custody order in place for this child and while she insisted that her notarized paper that she got was sufficient I made up a call.

I told her that officers would be going out the make contact with the child and check and see if he was ok. That it would be up to the officers how they were going to handle it from there. She was not happy. She insisted that the notary public told her that the paper she had was ALL she would need to get the child!

I politely responded, mind you I have been listening to her order me for about 8 minutes now. I asked in a firm voice. Ma’am is your notary a police officer? She said no. Are they a judge or attorney? She said no to both. “OK, then lets let the trained professionals for this situation handle it the best way they can.” She had no reply for me. We said our goodbye’s and I hung up the phone.

Shortly after that 2 of the best officers’ I have here went on the call. They felt horrible for this little boy and were literally on the call for hours trying to help him and CPS. CPS for those that aren’t familiar with it stands for Children Protective Services. Although I don’t believe they do protect children much any more. They are to busy with rules almost as long as mine… and I digress….

Officer’s determine the caller was restrained by order of the court and could not even be near the child. What makes her think a notarized piece of paper can overturn the judges restraining order?

CPS responds to the location and determines that the mother (who does not want the child) would be the best place to place the child! She openly said she didn’t want him but they are insisting that she takes him! I don’t get it.

Several of us in here are upset with them… And the 2 officers are upset also, saying the couple that were watching the child appeared to be awesome! It would have been better not making up a call and leaving the child with them. The only thing I can say, is at least this little boy is logged into the system now. Because I know they will be out for him again!

To all the soon to be Ladies in the World - Dispatcher

2010-02-06T15:32:00.000-08:00

I remember when you called me this morning. The words you used when I asked you how you knew the male that just threw you out of the car and took your purse and phone were "He used to be my sex friend". Do you remember me asking you what a sex friend was?

I'm going to be honest with you - I already knew what it was. I wanted to hear you say it out of your own mouth. I wanted you to hear yourself speak the words as you told me he was a friend that you had casual sex with. You quickly rolled right over saying that 'it was a while ago tho' and even tho you and him hadn't had any sex in the last year he came for you today because he wanted some. I believe those were nearly your words. Do you remember the tears that you were crying as you recounted the moment's that he was trying to have sex with you in the car that he was giving you a ride home in? Even though you were saying no, he wasn't listening. When he finally came to - From his 'gotta get some' state of mind, he was angered you were actually denying him pleasure!

The nerve of him! Right? Yes, what he did was not right in anyway, but look at yourself!

Future Woman listen up!

If you want a man to admire you and love you and think that you are the world in their life then act like it!

1. Stop going out in flip flops and sweats and actually dress nice. Hide your belly button and put on a shirt over the boobs you are flaunting! For goodness sake, I have never met a respectable man that wanted his wife to look like a slut when they were in public! And I don't know any woman that wants her husband to see YOUR boobs.

2. Stop using words that would make even a sailor blush! There not pretty and to be honest (oh goodness my mother is coming out!) If your words are all 3 and 5 letters long... It shows what little education you really have! Do you want your future husband to think your stupid? Not to mention, the words are ugly and what you speak-you are! So they make you ugly!

3. Stop kissing and sleeping with every man you come in contact with! Your future husband DOES NOT want to know about the men you slept with before him! News Flash!! Most men want to believe that they are your one and only! They don't want their best friend asking them.. 'hey did she do that for you too?' They want to please you and not think there being compared!

4. and finally.. A sex partner is a cheap way of giving a portion of yourself away. You will never get this back. You will miss it and you will kick yourself over and over because you did not have enough respect and will power to wait for the man that you love. I know this becuase that is what most suicidal girls cry out to me! So learn from them please!

And because I have a feeling your mother's and fathers are not talking to you about this I'll just put it out there... Sex is between 2 people that love each other. That have over time developed a bond between them. They know not only each others first name but middle and last and date of birth and childhood secrets! They know where each other lives and what their favorite food is.

Neither one of them would (or have ever) hit the other or called the other bad names or said mean threatening things in any way to the other! And they do not cheat on the other! They value each other!

When true love happens an amazing thing happens: Sex becomes a gift! A special gift that God will bring to you and your partner and it will be something unlike anything you have ever experienced! It only happens once in a lifetime if your lucky!

If it's not --- Then you don't have it! I know this!!

There come's a time when you need to look in the mirror and realize that you are beautiful! Every one of you! That God made you and has something special planned that only you can help Him with!

The future women of this world have the power to change relationships for the better! Stop allowing men to use you for their pleasure! They count their encounter's, they brag about them and your just another notch! Stand firm and believe in yourself enough to say NO!

I once met a boy that actually told me things that my Officer said later... were never to be said to a woman EVER! But it was about how they learned which woman were easy! Sweeties.. They pass that info around and their laughing about it!

Say NO to being a doormat! Say NO to believing that 'they need you' or your hurting them or they will go blind! Please the woman before you could see right thru there lies! They haven't come up with anything new in a long time! If the woman of the past could say NO then so can you!

Stand up for yourselves and leave the men that are rude or abusive towards you! Take a stand and tell your friends to be united! You have the power and you don't even know it!

Think of this: If all the woman stopped putting up with the crap that boys dish out and left the men that were idiots and held out for something better...... Those boys that were now alone?-I'm going to bet they would stop being such jerks and start being real men! If they were no longer able to treat woman like scum.

And for the record! I have learned that real men, the really exciting ones that we always dreamed of having. The ones that curl our toes and make us excited to go home every day, you know the ones. They call you to tell you they love you! They sneak a peak at your ToDo list and start completing it for you so they can have a few minutes with you! The ones that would never ask you to do anything illegal, or carry their weapons for them. I have a secret!

Those real men that we (as little girls) used to dream of being married to do exist! Some would say they are the boring or 'nerdy' ones that were in school. Maybe also the one's that weren't wrapped up in some type of clique. They are the ones that always did what was right. They went to school instead of gangs. They laid in bed and dreamed at night of a girl loving them like they saw the jock's in school or the 'bad' kid being loved. I know they exist becuase I have met them and they have begged me to introduce them to a nice girl with no drama!

You see, they like to make drama together - The nice romantic comedy drama that you see in the movies! They are all about that kind of drama! Please hold out for the best! They are holding out for you!

Something to think about - I once heard a man tell another female that he couldn't see himself kissing the girl he was on a date with, because he didn't want to kiss someone else's future wife!

So...The man you are kissing right now... is that your future husband? Or someone else's?

Really #23 - Dispatcher

2010-02-02T14:50:00.000-08:00

Please someone tell me what this woman was thinking???

A female calls me saying her chest is hurting. I confirm, 'you having chest pains?' She says no its just not feeling right she might be having an anxiety attack. So I get her information and proceed to transfer her to the Ambulance. This is where I sit on the line (myself muted of course) wondering what the heck this woman was thinking about when she was doing what she told the Ambulance she did.

Female(to Amb): I tried Crystal meth last night and I'm diabetic. I wasn't hungry and couldn't really eat. I was doing really good and all but I wanted to go to sleep, I've been up all night (shes calling in the late afternoon) and I haven't been able to sleep so I smoke weed sometimes and after I took my pain pills I smoked some weed so it would calm me down... and that's when my chest started to tighten up on me.

Then she follows with: Your not going to tell the management here will you? (Because they would kick her out if they knew)

My coworker next to me (after I told her) just quipped back: It's the pharmacist's fault. They don't put the warning on the side of the bottle 'do not take with illegal drugs' They're to blame.

You have to know her to know... she was joking! Our citizen's in our town never like to take responsibility for their own problems. Its ALWAYS someone else's fault!

Radio Traffic Is Serious Business - Dispatcher

2010-01-30T08:12:00.000-08:00

When you catch me on the air, I'm all business. 1. I hate talking over the air, knowing my voice is being recorded. 2. I hate the way my voice sounds. 3. I always fumble something so I keep it brief and to the point. Usually!

Today was a little different. Probably because it wasn't really busy and it was my friend trying to be a smart pants. Mostly, because he caught me off guard and doing something else..and I stepped on the mic and just replied like he was standing next to me!

L728: Dispatch I'm not spanish speaking is there another officer avail for this call.

(what he didn't know yet... I had just found one and hit enter as I put him on the call)

Me: Affirm, L734 is en route for spanish speaking you can cancel sir.

L728: Copy thanks. (then Key's up again) I am however available for all canadian or english type calls.

Me: Hmmm.. how about Australian? Will you be available for those also? (yes, I was smart right back)

L728: (He knew I was playing) Affirm, I can take those for you as well!

After that I got 5-6 different units scratching their mic at me. I wondered and hopping, they didn't think I was being a hard nose dispatcher? I hope not! The whole thing was in total fun and man off the cuff! By the time the words came out of my mouth I was trying to pull them back in! The unit himself sent me a message laughing!

Between me and him.. it was super funny.. but the others.. hmmmm not sure..

Officer In A New Area - Dispatcher

2010-01-26T05:38:00.000-08:00

As a dispatcher I know that once a year we have this big staff change and all the officers move in or out of a specific unit or they move to a new area. Those that like the same scenery stay put and keep doing what they were doing.

This year my Officer decided he wanted a new area! He wanted the change, different streets, different people, different co-workers, different bosses and higher up's, and a different dispatcher (Just because I don't work that channel silly readers!). So several months ago he packed up his bags and drives across the street and unloaded them in a new locker!

I'm not kidding when I say 'across the street', the area he went to is the one just south of where he was. So this means that he no longer gets to come home for lunch as much since his home is no longer in his area. It also means I don't get to see him after I get off work and am out for my run. Unless I run south.. Which sometimes I do ;-) .

I was perfectly fine with the new area idea, till it actually happened. You see this area that he moved to is just one solid code 3 response! It's near constant 'on emergency traffic and off emergency traffic!' So basically for a guy that loves to hunt and catch bad guy's its a dream come true! So my officer is in heaven!

For a dispatcher the radio is a headache. Officers talking over each other, constant fight for airtime and the all knowing hand gesture's from the inside of the mic as the dispatcher sits in her chair waving her hand as if signaling the person out in the field that's talking and talking about something that occured an hour ago, to finish up already I need to broadcast another 211 in progress - code 3 call!

For the Wife of an officer - This is a whole new experience. You see in his old area, it was so big that even if he was on the call the second it came out he would have at least 5-15 minutes of driving to actually get to the area of the call. The new area, is so small, since it's so busy, that you can easily be around the corner and actually en route on the call and have the suspect run smack dab into you as he is looking behind his shoulder to see if the 'popo' is on his tail!

It's small! Small and SMALL!!! And my officer run's code 3 nearly everyday, which is something we rarely get with our policy!

I have found myself worrying about him, which is an all new thing for me! I wonder if knowing the area he works and the calls he gets is actually a better or worse thing for me to know. You see, I don't know these partner's of his. I don't work this area's radio so I don't know these officers. I'm not holding their secret's and off colored joke's like I did the other area. I have nothing on them, no dirt, nothing to make them listen up and back up my Officer or I'll send you paper call after paper call!!!! I'll personally cut the tree's down, needed to make all that paper you will need to write all those calls!

Ok, I know, it's not actual paper anymore. It just sounds funny and me? I'm all worthless idle play threats of endless paper!

In reality, I have found myself just a little on edge and with good reason! His first day in the area there is a major 211 that occured with the suspect shot and who was on the call? Yep! My Officer! Thank goodness he was 1 street further then the first officer there! But these calls are the norm! The normal everyday in the middle of daylight same ole same ole calls of the day! And my officer wants to be the first to arrive... He seems to thrive on that stuff!

So what am I doing? Learning to spin! Fiber that is. I know, I know it sounds silly! But I have learned that I must keep myself busy so I don't worry. Since I already finished the remodel of our old home (yes I did it!) these last five years I needed something to keep me busy. God tells us specifically to give it to him and not worry and that worrying is a clear sign we are not trusting God, so I am learning to spin!

I'll let you know how it goes!

Mandating Reporting - Dispatcher

2010-01-25T04:35:00.000-08:00

Male: Yes I need to speak to someone about making a report. It’s not an emergency.
Me: What’s going on sir?
Male: Well, I work for law enforcement and I had a friend stay over here last night and her spouse beat her up. I needed to report that.
Me: Is she still there?
Male: Oh no, she left already. I just need to let you know.
Me: OK sir, we can send someone to her house to check on her. What’s her address?
Male: I don’t know her address. She left just after breakfast, I just need to report it.
Me: You’re a mandated reporter? (I asked nicely?)
Male: Yes, I am.
Me: Why didn’t you call last night or this morning sir, when she was at your home. So we could come and talk to her then?

I said it very nicely. He stumbles a little bit. I can’t find the female in our system at all. He needs to tell me where she is so we can go out and talk to her, check her welfare and make sure she is OK. He tells me he will get the address and call back.

Should I hold my breath? And for goodness sake.. Help us help her please!!!!

He went on to tell me that she didn't want him to call so he didn't. He let her spend the night at his location and fed her and then let her leave. Knowing full well that we couldn't do anything with it without a location to go and talk to her. Interesting also how he said he worked for Law Enforcement and wouldn't actually tell me where and was calling from a blocked number.

So basically he was calling.... because he was a mandated reporter just to say he called... When in actuality he knew there was nothing we could do.. Hmmm He smells like a security guard.

Flirt With You Husband - Dispatcher

2010-01-22T05:02:00.000-08:00

I was once given a very wise bit of advice (a few years ago) and I have always remembered it. I want to pass it on. It really works!

Wives - Flirt with your husbands. If you don't, trust me, someone else will!

Stop and reread that again. Then think about it. Especially if your married to an Officer! Flirt!

We go out in public often and we're always kissing and hugging and such (unless he is on duty and working. No kissing in uniform (in public)). So much so, we get our meals paid for quite a bit! It's cute, when someone walks up to us and says something about 'oh you two are so cute!' or refreshing.

It's equally sad to see an elderly lady starring at us while her man is intently eating his food oblivious to her sitting across from him. Until he needs the pepper that is. She just looks like she is longing for him to look her way.

I flirt! and I flirt a lot and all the time. Cause I am married to this wonderful man that is my best friend and my sole mate and my king and my lover and my husband! I also flirt because I know he LOVES IT when I do!!

I also know that woman out there don't care about the wedding ring that my Officer is wearing and they flirt with him also! (But not as good as I do!! I have studied him and know what he likes) But, women don't seem to care He is mine. I have seen it. several months ago at Starbucks I walk in, he is in uniform behind me, I order and she is not even looking at me. She is looking at this Handsome Officer that is standing behind me, and asking HIM what she can get him.

HELLO!! I am standing right here!! Can you see his wedding ring! Here, let me show you mine real close... cause they MATCH!!!! (as I shove it forward for her to see).

I didn't really say that. My Officer played as he didn't know what she was doing, and motioned for me who was first in line. I actually took out 'our' credit card, gave her my order as I handed her the card and said "I'm paying for my Husbands drink also!" and looked at him "Sweetie, what do you want?"

Yes she was red in the face! and Yes I was doing the snoopy dance inside! He is mine! All women just back off!!!!!!

I told him about it later, what I was feeling. He laughed and he still says woman don't flirt with him. But I know for a fact they do. I see it all the time when I am around him! With him in uniform and out!

So, since I know women are ruthless, I flirt with my man! I do it so much that to be honest, it is just second nature now! And he loves it!!

All in all I believe it was the best piece of advice I have ever gotten... Well, just about!

Stupid Female Caller - Dispatcher

2010-01-18T04:54:00.000-08:00

OK, I feel really bad for titling the post "Stupid Female Caller" but I really can't come up with a better title! It's just horrible that people always end up saying what this female says. Almost as if they think it will get the officer's at their house faster.. or us to stop asking them questions. In reality, It opens up a whole new round of questioning!!

Female: You need to come here right now!
Me: What’s going on at your location ma’am?
Female: There’s a man at my door and I need you hear right now! (she is yelling)
Me: Who is this man?
Female: I don’t know, he just came up to my door!
Me: Well, what does he want?
Female: I don’t know. I’m not going to ask him! You send an officer out here to ask him.
Me: Ma’am what is this man doing?
Female: I told you! Standing at my door.
Me: Is he trying to get in? Or pound on your door? Or did he just walk up to your door and knock on it?
Female: Ya, the last one.
Me: So he just walked up to your door and knocked on it?

Let’s stop a moment. It’s a nice warm day. Sun is up and all is well in the world.

Female: I’m going to shoot this man if you don’t send someone!
Me: Ma’am do you have a gun?
Female: Yes and send someone or I will shoot him!

Now, what really happened? The man is a salesman. Instead of just asking (through the door) what he wanted and telling him to leave. She called us. She didn’t have a gun but said so because she wanted us to show up. Which we did, with our own guns and tazer’s. The poor salesman was sent on his way, and I hope to heavens sake that the officer really did pound in to her how stupid her statement of having a gun really was, when she didn’t! Like they told me they did!!

Seriously, we don't mess around with gun calls!!! So don't say you have one unless you really do! Or you could end up shot and I would end up on the news (my voice and yours on tape) with you telling me that you have a gun and going to shoot someone!!

Stupid Female Caller fits... Doesn't it?

Really? #22 -Dispatcher

2010-01-14T04:47:00.000-08:00

Me: “Police Department how can I help you?”

Male: “Yes, I need to speak to Officer Hernandez please.”

Me: “Which Hernandez please?”

Male: “The one that works for your department. (He pauses, then continues) Oh, I guess that would be like asking for Officer Smith huh?”

Me: (following his lead) ”No more so then asking for Jones, well, actually we would have more luck with finding you the correct officer Jones. Do you know what division or area he works?”

I ended up finding what I believed to be the right Officer. Transferred him over and all was well. I love getting Citizen’s that call in and are actually nice and human.

I'm In Love With Google Voice - Dispatcher

2010-01-10T04:33:00.000-08:00

I have found the phone system to end all phone systems for shift workers!! Actually, for anyone! The best thing of all, its FREE!!! I love that 4 letter word! FREE!!!!!

Google voice came out several months ago. They actually bought out another company and turned it around to being Google Voice. You have to sign up for it and wait for an invitation. I got mine a few months ago and have been slowly playing with it ever since. From what I have learned and what I am told it does…. I love it!

What it does it genius! It lets you pick a new number or keep your own. I chose a new one as I heard using your current number limited you in some of the features. It let me scroll through and pick out the number I liked the best.

I then went through my gmail account and updated all the contacts I had, adding their phone numbers. Then I pulled out my phone and am still transferring all the names from my cell phone into Gmail. It is cumbersome indeed.

I put my home and cell phone number into Voice telling it what number it could get me at. And I’m set to go. When someone calls me on my new number it rings all of my numbers. I can choose whether I want to answer my home or cell phone just by picking up that phone. If I answer my cell and I am still on the phone as I walk into my home.. I hit a few buttons and it transfers the call on my home phone. The caller knows nothing.

If I don’t answer, this is the best part, it goes to voice mail. Where someone can leave a message and within 60 seconds voice has transcribed the message and text it to my cell phone and emailed it to my email account. This is where I sing Yea!!!!! I no longer have to check my voice mail!!!!

It’s not perfectly accurate on the transcription, but you get the idea of what the call was about, and its getting better. You can play the message directly from your email. So no more calling in and listening through all the voice mails… unless you wanted to.

What’s even better, you can put people in groups. For each group you can record a special greeting tailored to them. You can also choose which one’s you want to have rung in to you and which calls to just send directly to voice mail.

Still all FREE!!

So I imagine this:
My friends get a nice warm goofy welcome..
My co-workers calling to see if I want to work - get a professional but warm voice mail greeting.
Unknown numbers - blocked and numbers I haven’t assigned to anything get a very professional no name given greeting.
The special work number (that has to get thru to us at all time for possible court and overtime) is assigned a professional greeting and let thru at all times.
The number from my ex is sent directly to no mans land with a message that his number will not be called back nor will his message be listened to.

I love technology!!!

So, with everything I learned and still learning and from what I have heard… I should be able to sit down at the computer just before I hit the hay and tell it.. Not to send any calls thru except for the one special number that has to get thru. Then I can lay my head down and know… that the special number will ring and wake me up.. But no one else will get thru!

The only thing better then this to me… Is being able to program it by the day of what hours to start and stop and hold the calls. And for info---- I already submitted that request to their suggestion department!

Go Google Voice!!!!

To The California DMV! - Dispatcher

2010-01-05T12:35:00.000-08:00

California Department of Motor Vehicles

Here in California, as I am sure it’s the same in other state’s, we pay our vehicle registration each year and we get rewarded with a wonderful colorful sticker. Once we get that sticker in the mail we run out happily and place it over the sticker we got last year! It’s an annual tradition. One that we do each year so 1. We show everyone we belong to the special club for driving. And 2. So Officer’s don’t have another reason to pull us over.

Heaven knows eliminating all reasons for being able to be pulled over is the name of the game isn’t it?

So I have a stick, I either want to shake or throw right towards DMV! This is me angry typing.

Mr Big Bad DMV,

Did you know that when we get the annual sticker for being a good boy or girl with our vehicle that we have to go out to our vehicle with a razor blade and remove all the other stickers so we can get a flat and smooth as possible surface to stick this sticker to? All in an attempt to deter someone from stealing it right off our plate?

Did you also know that after applying the sticker we take a razor blade to it? Making small cuts criss crossed all over the sticker so if they do get the nerve to steal the sticker that it comes off in pieces and is unusable to them?

Did you even more know that now they just take the whole plate? So we have to go get special screws to screw on our plates so they can’t just use an ordinary screwdriver to take it off?

So with this knowledge I ask you - (with my stick in hand!) Why can’t we search using the tag number? Why do you make us call a special number for the possible chance (during business hours and non furloughed days) to see which sticker is supposed to be on what car? I mean really, the criminals didn’t get your memo about only driving the vehicle with stolen tags during business hours. To be honest, we NEED this info at our fingertips to prevent and catch criminals from stealing YOUR issued stickers!

Could you hop to it already? This is the second decade in the 21st century. I know you have the ability to look up inside your department which vehicle that tag number is supposed to go to.. Make it available to all of us out here that actually have a need to know that!

If you don’t know where to put that information… Here let me help you… place it in one of the many boxes that has duplicate information!!!! Like why do you need the date they registered in there 4 times? Or all the garbly goop in the middle of the return. Slip it in there somewhere. But for goodness sake - Make it widely available in the search… Cause were letting criminals go because we can’t confirm the tag is on the correct vehicle!!!!

Sincerely,
Dispatcher

How I Celebrated Christmas (or Didn't) -Dispatcher

2010-01-02T04:20:00.000-08:00

I discovered something very interesting about myself on Christmas. While I had to work, my Officer decided to go to work also for someone that wanted the day off. Of course he was being paid for it. I thought it was a great idea. We couldn’t spend the day together with our slippers on, so we were going to spend it together, working.

That afternoon, I got off work and drove home. I was going to clean up and then make dinner. We could spend a few hours together and possibly watch a movie. It sounded just wonderful!
However, I actually let myself believe it was really going to happen.

I stood at the kitchen sink, after cleaning the dishes from dinner (his plate neatly covered and placed in the fridge for him). Reading his last text that he would probably be very late I settled for sitting down and calling family myself with a cup of tea. Normally this wouldn’t upset me, I would just keep going.

Tonight, it was as if Satan wanted something different for us. I stood at the sink worried. All kinds of thoughts came in and I dismissed them out as being stupid (which they were). Then I stood at the sink thinking… is he really at work? It caught me off guard because I stopped and laughed at how stupid for my officer that actually sounded.

But I started thinking of the other officers that I know and the kind of things they actually pull on their wives and I just had to pray. How grateful I was not to be married to one of those men and how wonderful and blessed I was to be married to the man I am with!

I had never stopped and thought about how easy it would be for officers to actually ‘fake’ their getting off work time, saying they had to stay late, when they really wanted to go somewhere else. But at that moment I thought, gee, it would be quite easy. Except for me, who works there, Wives of officers have to be really trusting. No wonder there are some that have a hard time with the whole overtime stuff their Officer have to work.

It was for a brief moment in time where I actually stopped, took myself out of the ‘Dispatcher married to an Officer’ and put my self in the shoes of an ‘Officer’s wife‘. I commend you all!!! Your officer’s should hug you and kiss you each time they come home and say thank you for loving them as well as you do.

They have a hard job, I will always be the first to say that. Their wives, have an equally hard job (though not as dangerous, most of the time), they have the job of loving and taking care of a man and household that has a lot of unknown’s in it. More then a ‘normal’ family.

Unknown’s? Arrival times, overtime, mood’s, type of calls, visual horrors, nightmares, people on the street, stresses, altered sleep patterns, shift work… I could go on, but I think we all have the point. When we married an Officer we knew we were signing up for a different ride. One that would have a roller coaster that would take sharp turns at unexpected times. If we as wives don’t have our act together Satan won’t hesitate to poke us till we doubt every truth in our being.

I finished the dishes made calls to my family and thanked God that my Officer was on the news again… At least I got to see him! (yes I rewound it about 5 times. Does that make me a stalker?) I tucked myself into bed prayed that God handle satan’s thoughts and the justice for the man that shot the other one, causing my officer not to come home on Christmas day on the time I wanted him home. I settled to going to sleep

That’s the precise moment when my Officer came thru the door, tattered a little and full of a smile for me. All was right with the world again. He was safe and while the bad guy wasn’t caught…. I can pretty much bet he will be shortly.

So Christmas wasn't bad after all, I got to cuddle up in the arms of my Officer! Which is the best place to be!!!

Contemplation - Dispatcher

2009-12-29T11:52:00.000-08:00

I get off work and am driving home. I just got off a 15 hour day and it's dark outside. It was dark when I left for work this morning also. I know the sun came up, because every break and lunch I got I spent it walking around the building outside dreaming of warmth!

The weather is getting colder here and I, being where I live have never owned a coat! Well, a coat that actually keeps you warm. Of course I have the thin small cute one's that you put on when you go outside, because you want to look, well fashionably cute!

Here in our state in the parts of the world that never see snow (well almost this week!) and it rarely gets cold enough to kill the ant colonies underground (hence the monthly pest control bill) you just don't have a need to buy an expensive coat to keep you warm that you will only wear a few times a year. You spend your money on sunglasses that you will wear everyday with the exception of a few days a year!

But this year, it's cold! The fruit on the tree's are cold and the floor in my house is cold! I am cold. The weather man is saying we may break a 20 year low for daytime weather. Sadly I was around for the last record that was broken. And it was cold then also!

I make it into the house. My officer is off running an errand, and I enjoy the warmth and peace. There is something wrong with our city. Besides the budget and lack of funds and firing a ton of people, there is something wrong. Like it's people are lost in some video game and they can't find there way thru the maze.

This morning alone we had lights and siren's thru the city, multiple agencies chasing a man that stole a car that he barely knew how to drive. If you steal a car, learn how to drive it first! Then the man that was beaten to death and killed by his roommate! Bloody, brutal and pointless! Of course we still had the double digit stolen vehicles and then it got quiet. This is when I relaxed in my chair, took the occasional phone call and made the even more occasional call up for an officer. Most of which will be a phone call type report which are now holding for 7 days, because we laid off ALL of the cadets and most of the community officers that actually worked those calls. I knew making them that they would not be getting a call back most likely till the new year. Very sad!!!

The phones took a turn later (after I should have been off, but was working for a friend) for the worse. It was none stop mayhem and madness. Can someone please tell me why everyone wants to fight with each other? When I say fight... I mean to the death type fighting! And then there are the Robberies that come out faster then you can shake a stick at!

It just seems like our citizen's are caught in this video game and they can't seem to pass to the next level.

It's a video game that is totally rated M for mature audience also!

T'was The Night Before Layoffs - Dispatcher

2009-12-24T10:10:00.000-08:00

T'was the night before layoffs when all thru the Department,

Not a clerk or dispatcher was stirring, not even a cadet!

The Calls were all placed in the computer with care,

In hopes that an officer would soon be avail.

The citizen's were all nestled snug in their beds,

While visions of safety all danced in their heads.

It was off in the distant far away up north,

Where I and my wife settled down for a short nap!

Present's finally wrapped and toys all assembled,

We blew out the candles and crawled into bed.

When up on my roof I heard such a bang,

feeling the house rumble and hearing steps up above.

Thinking it was St. Nick I laid still in my bed,

When much to my surprise a louder clatter arose.

I sprang from my bed and rush to the window,

In time to see 8 large reindeer sliding off my roof.

I stood by the window frozen with fear as the presents

fell scattering as if they were colorful flakes of snow!

The sleigh dangled from the chimney with Ol' St Nick,

who appeared caught dangling upside down, his boot laces entangled in his gear shift.

It took me a moment to get to my wits,

as I rushed to the phone to dial 911.

The operator didn't believe me as I told her,

"No really, St. Nick is dangling upside down infront of my bedroom window!"

She promised to send help as soon as an officer was free,

I hung up wondering when could that be?

We waited and waited St. Nick still upside down,

as the neighbors were starting to gather,

and looking at me to get St. Nick down!

I called back 911 and exclaimed,

When will you be here? Its been over an hour?

To which they exclaimed "We are en route to life or death emergencies sir,

We will arrive as soon as officer's are avail.'

I relayed to them of St. Nick's condition (Breathing and Concious),

and pleading with them the urgency for all the young children.

"He must continue his route for goodness sake!"

The Dispatcher, while nice, explained of budget cuts and layoffs,

replying there were other 911 calls holding for her to answer.

She instructed me of the non emergency number and a click I did hear.

When off in the distant a thunder I could hear,

they are finally en route! I exclaimed to St. Nick.

He dangled in front of my window upside down and pale,

as he gave me the wink and a twinkle with his nose.

With a large gust of wind a swooping sound I heard,

as off in the distance I saw an army of Elv's.

They flocked into my yard and up on my roof,

and carefully rescued dear Santa to continue is route!

I watched Ol' St. Nick flying away, up into the sky and off out of sight!

When coming around the corner were 2 officers with shiny lights and sirens blarring.

They arrived with such gusto ready to help,

Looking tired and worn I exclaimed what had happened.

They looked at me with questions, asking my wife if I was ok.

She also exclaimed what had happened of which they could not believe.

They called in to get on my history, and soon believed,

I must have been dreaming or a touch to much egg nog.

You could hear over their radio's a broadcast come out -

Another call of Santa stuck up on a roof!

Fleeing down the steps I hollard after them,

Don't worry, his Elv's are fully staffed,

they will swoop down quickly to rescue him.

But I heard them exclaim as they raced out of sight,

"This man has got to be nuts! Doesn't he know there aren't enough of us tonight?"

Counting Key Strokes - Dispatcher

2009-12-22T09:56:00.001-08:00

This post is for dispatchers... But all others feel free to listen in. :-) Most of you probably don't know that many of us actually count keystrokes. So when Officer's tell us to put them in service and log them off, we go straight for the shortest route of key strokes and just logg them off.

So we do: L217 in service (Enter) L217 off (enter)

We will do: L217 off (Enter)

We cut out a whole group of keystrokes. So I'm watching (on my TiVo .. I love TiVo!!) The Cnet Video podcasts and they are given shortcut keystrokes to perform certain commands! I was all perked up for that. Officer was kind of ho-hum and looked at me oddly when I actually watched it and then saved it for future watching. (I actually have to "Do" before it becomes engrained in my memory).

So here they are... Thank you Cnet for giving me wonderful podcasts where I can sit and watch TV and actually learn something.. Instead of just vegging!

Suicide Resources - Dispatcher

2009-12-18T10:25:00.000-08:00

I recently took a class on officer suicide's. Learned quite a bit from the class. For one, children of Officers have the highest rate of suicide's that alone got me thinking. This class was made in 2005, so I'm not real sure how up to date the information is.. But for an Officer's wife, use the sites below to be more informed. I wrote down the links at the end of the show. Just in case you were interesting in looking into them.

West Coast Post-Trauma Retreat - I love this site!! It's not just for Officer's. It's also for dispatchers! Started by First responders for First responders! What could be better?

Survivors of Suicide

Concerns of Police Survivors (National Cops)

Tears of a Cop - I just went to this site... and my mouth hanging open.. when on my screen flashed... every 24 hours a cop dies from suicide.. Help us.. Hmmm..

Friends and Families of Suicide - This is their new website.

The class was quite interesting in going through all the critical incidences that Officer's go through. Our department alone goes through everything they talked about. Sadly, I sat in my chair reciting the officer's names that went through the incidents as they were going over them. Saying a quick prayer for them as well.

I don't want you to freak out on me becuase I'm posting this. I just go through life with the moto that we need to be prepared! If we read the information or hear it, then when we need it God can pull up for us!

Never Openly Support a Local Politician - Dispatcher

2009-12-14T15:16:00.000-08:00

Very interesting things happened on the way to the market... Well, not market but....

We all seem to be in meetings these days. We pile into rooms all dressed in certain colors to show we are united and other union groups are hovering around their tables to figure out what they are going to do. With one thing in common.... Trying to figure out how to bring suggestions to the table to reverse the triple digit layoffs that are happening in the Police department alone! Trying to find away to make everyone happy!

What I have realized from the moment that it actually happened! Never ever, under any circumstances should a police department or a union that represents employee's from that department ever, ever openly support a locally running candidate for political office!!!! I'm not saying that this is where all the lay offs are coming.. I'm just saying that -- Well let the political persons words speak for them selves:

Let me set the stage: You are a higher up, you openly support the other candidate that ran and lost. In a meeting with officials (that you did not support) are making decisions about letting people go in your department. You are giving ideas and suggestions on how they can keep people... and you are told this:

"Why should I offer an early retirement option to someone who I can demote, furlough, and layoff in 18 months?"

This one comment is reason enough for me to never openly support a political candidate in the city that I work in!

Update - Dispatcher

2009-12-10T14:37:00.000-08:00

Thank you so much for all the prayers. Everyone in this department needs them desperately.

When the news came out and the rumors finally came true, it was devastating for all. Some large division's inside our department lost well over half of their employee's. Other division no longer exist, I am still trying to figure out how they are actually going to do their jobs when the people are gone.... We're getting a taste of it now.

When someone is being laid off they are giving a 30 day notice. So essentially, they have 30 days to come to work knowing that in 30 days they will not have a job! They will no longer work with their family and they won't be receiving a paycheck dropped into their wonderful bank account on a regular basis. They also have 30 days to come to work and be reminded of the above, and work among the others that have a job (so far).

The later to me would be to hard to stand. I am thinking this is why so many of the one's that are being 'laid off' are not showing up. The calls are stacking up that they can handle and once again I can not see all my calls on one screen.

I am loving the timing, if this has to happen at all, its nice that the phones are not horribly busy. We are in the middle of the slow down. You know, the slow down that comes just as the nice people gear up for Christmas shopping and the bad guys gear up for Christmas stealing? It's usually a 3-5 week lull in the action that last year we never got. At all!!

I came home that horrible day that we all remember and stood in front of my Officer and told him. 'We need a game plan! Just in case they get to me! I need to know what we're going to do!' He shrugged and said they would never reach me, that I was safe. In which I replied, "Today I went to work thinking I was safe, and came home with several of my co-workers let go, and several lower on the seniority list. We need a plan, I'm told this is just one of three rounds!"

We sat down and looking over our goals reorganized them and thanked God for the ability to look at things in a new light. The reality, Officer will most likely be safe! He is higher up there. I on the other hand am probably safe. I don't feel as safe as I felt 2 months ago, but I have options and choices and I am embracing them with anticipation!

I am doing my job and keeping a smile on my face. I watch my words so as others don't hear me complaining about what is going on when they themselves don't even have a job. I send the emails and letters to the officials that ask for opinions about what I think they should be doing to save money and balance the budget and I rat out the employee's that stand around complaining they are scared they may have to move shifts! Hello YOU HAVE A JOB! The worker next to you is only 2 more away from not! I make sure to say hello to everyone as I always did. It would be so easy to turn my head and ignore the issue as they walk in the door.

Yesterday, a co-worker walks in and I smile and say hello! She smiles back, we talk for a moment and she looks at me sadly and says "I feel like I have a scarlet letter across my front! I walk thru there (center) everyday like always and now people look and turn away. They used to say hello to me and stop me and talk. You were the only one to ask me how I was and I don't even know you that well."

My heart broke! Here is this wonderfully nice person that deserves to be treated with love and respect and she is ignored in her time of need most. I was ashamed of my fellow co-workers. "It's not you," I reply. "You remind them of what is going on right now and they are just all scared and trying to ignore it."

I know in my heart God brings us through things He knows we can handle. This to He knows we will survive. It's the co-workers I worry about. Some of my family that are loosing their jobs are single mothers and took this job thinking they were going to retire with this department!

Everything Changed Today - Dispatcher

2009-12-06T08:53:00.000-08:00

Today marks the beginning of everything being different. The rumors were true! A lot of our Co-workers have lost their jobs next month. We're talking in the 3 digits here! Sworn are not being touched (yet).. to give you a heads up of what a tole this is for us. We're also told this is the first round. To expect more.

There is crying in the hall and faces that would normally have a smile on them, with frowns. People that are workhorses and go getters are leaving us, not at their choice, and the ones that openly don't want to be here are staying.

All the while that this is going on inside our walls... We have demonstrators outside with banners and signs yelling how mean police are and useless we are! Can they just throw salt on us? Of course they do not know what is going on inside. That is non of their business... we come and go from the building with no emotion, we work for the police department. We are united! We know what we do is to protect and serve... We know that... and they do not!

Everyone in this department is effected by what is going on. The text of the day is 'r u ok?' Like family members in a disaster making contact with each other to make sure they are still with us. R U OK? Yes, and U?

Most will never understand the feeling we are having right now. For most you go to work and go home and spend time with your family. You cook Thanksgiving turkey and open Christmas present's together and laugh and shoot the breeze with your family...

Here, we celebrate Thanksgiving with our co-workers... We work part shifts so those with kids at home can go home and open presents together.. We toast the new year's with each other.. We sneak peaks at the fireworks one at a time. This is our family!!

We don't get to go home when we want. Holiday's, What are holidays? Those are days that civilians get to celebrate... These people that are being let go are our family..

It takes a special person to work for a police department. You are asked to give up so much of yourself when you walk thru these doors.. and your bio family equally has to sacrifice some of themselves as well..

Iknow I am not making much sense.. My brain is still processing it all!

Questions - Dispatcher

2009-12-02T08:32:00.000-08:00

Just for fun... The first few minutes of a call most likely looks like this........

What is your emergency?
What is your address?
Any weapons?
Does anyone need an ambulance?
How many people?
Any vehicles?
What make?
What model?
what color?
what year how old?
How many doors?
License Plate number?
(repeat for each vehicle)
What race is the person?
Male or fem?
Thin Medium or Heavy build? (Average is not one of the choices)
How tall? (I'm looking for numbers here... Not - 'really tall!')
What is he wearing from the TOP down?
Do they have access to one of the vehicles?
Did they leave in a vehicle or on foot?
What direction were they last seen going? (just the last street they were on and direction from there please)
(repeat for every subject)

Now, tell me what happened?

Now, I can sit and listen to details of what just happened.... I'll ask you more questions so be prepared to be intrupted alot! After all is said and done and I am the one satisfied with the information I have... You can tell me what ever you want. The line is yours. Feel free to use it. but be forwarned.. I am recording the call...

Rumors Fly Faster Then Rocketts - Dispatcher

2009-11-28T07:58:00.000-08:00

When you want to spread information quickly do so in the form of a rumor...

Rumor's have a way of infecting every square inch of a location and it happens faster then you and I can drive to the store.

If you want to be really effective.... don't come out and try and calm the nerves of the people or event's that are being talked about. Don't squash the rumors or attempt to let people know that you are doing everything you can to keep the rumors from coming true. Or even mention that the rumors are false.

To be effective... you must be.......

Something Is Up! - Dispatcher

2009-11-22T07:28:00.000-08:00

You know when you walk in the room and you can feel the tension? The term 'It's so thick you can cut it with a knife.' ? Well, something is in the air and I'm not quite sure what it is, but it's not feeling very loving right now.

I walk up stairs.... trying to get a peek at the subject that is using our outside curtesy phone as his personal pleasure toy, so I can make up a call with actually putting in his description... and I am stopped by one of my friends. He asks me 'Please pray for us.'

I am taken aback. 1. How does he know I am a christian? 2. What is going on? 3. The whole feeling in the room is heavy and sad.

I never ask what they want me to pray for. I just said 'oh my of course' and asked if he was ok. If you want me to pray specifically, they will tell me, and really, God knows when I mention your name exactly why you asked me to pray. Pray I did!

But that moment, when I was passing by that room, when I was pulled in with those words, from a friend I cherish and laugh with, with the sound of pain and uncertainty that I heard in his voice... Hurt my heart. That moment will be a moment I remember each time I pass by that part of the hall. Odd as it may be... His soul was speaking to me in those few words! I just wanted to walk over and give him a big hug!

Sometimes I Feel Like This - Dispatcher

2009-11-19T16:18:00.000-08:00

Sometimes (we all do at times) I come home feeling as if I am barely hanging on to what is left in the day! Exhausted with what the world has left me. Imagine my surprise when I walked in the door, walk into the kitchen and glance out at the large tree (of which 2/3 of it is gone since it decided to drop several branches this summer when the honey was in school, attempting to take the power line to the house with it..... I digress) You look out at the tree to make sure its still standing and in the tree you see this......

And you walk away... Only to stop and go back to take another look. Then shaking your head you start rushing to the Office to grab the camera praying Gertrude (yes I have a pet squirrel in the back and this is him) will stay in place long enough to get a good picture!

Gertrude hung on here for about 20 minutes while he chewed off all the seed pods and let them fall to the ground.

Tomorrow I will be raking them up!

Get On The Line!! - Dispatcher

2009-11-17T22:44:00.000-08:00

Today I sat here wondering... Getting angry inside and a little miffed. The Dispatcher next to me has taken 4 calls. I am on my 20th. I don't usually count but today is just the last straw in my brain as I know I have taken my share and a portion of her's.

I wonder were she goes. All day long she sit's down logs in gets up and disappears. She walks in to the back room takes a call and leaves again. She is gone for several mins to 30 or so and sits back down again. She has made several calls to business' asking them to hold items for her till she gets off work and then up again and leaving.

I get angry that no one is saying anything. But then again, why should I? She is the same person that never works. No one ever complains about her, or so it seems, I should be learning my lesson.

I am miffed that nothing is done and she is allowed to act like that. I just know she has to know where the bodies are burried. (thats a term for she has dirt on someone!).

So tonight of all nights I have my bible study to attend to. I drive there, not in the mood, and sit very quiet. I'm trying to listen to her but her words just go in one ear and out the other. I thank God silently that I own the DVD's so I can listen to them when I am more able to comprehend what my ears are hearing.

Then it happens! She (Beth Moore) starts to yell about how she had to do something that she didn't want to do. She goes on talking directly to me. Everyone in the room ceases to exist as I hear God (thru Beth) telling me what to do.

Get on the line girl!!! Don't be standing over there! Get on the line I drew for you, right here! No, not by it, ON IT!!!! I made you to do this work! It's none of your business the lack of work others are doing. It is your business that MY people get help. If your the one to do it then so be it!! That is why I made you! Stick your tongue to the roof of your mouth and hold your words!! I AM in control!

Whew!!! And here all along I thought I was in charge! Hahahahahaa

First Responders - Dispatchers

2009-11-05T16:30:00.000-08:00

Stop the presses!! I had to watch a training video!! (I love em, means more knitting time while I learn something!). This video was on disease's and bad health stuff and first responders and how our state has put a plan together!

So, in short, our lovely state basically has said in this video that in case a flu epidemic comes our way, that they are prepared. They went on to say that since the first responders are the one's that go into these home's and make contact with so many people (of which they can't control) they would be the first on the list to get vaccinated if they wanted to be.

They also went on to say that in case of an anthrax or some type of disease that was spread that needed antibiotics that the Officers and each of their family members would get a supply to help them not get sick, or get better!

Interesting video indeed it was. But I wonder, seeing the news and the long lines that are forming all over this area for people to get the vaccine, I have not received one email or letter and neither has my officer on when the first responders will be getting their shots.

In fact, read Life While Handcuffed to a Lawman's post her whole family is sick with it. (Oh great my officer just coughed!!!! Tissue people.. hand me a darn tissue!!!)

I just have one thing to say! Shame on my state for forgetting the first responders! They should have had the option to at least of been able to get it - if they wanted it!

I Can Disconnect Now - Dispatcher

2009-11-02T10:18:00.000-08:00

I'll be the first to admit I put way to many updates in my calls. But I'm just going along the line's that 'hey, there can never be to much info in a call right?'. Except when I deal with one Officer. Read This... Then we will go on!

Yep, same one! One of the jewel's of our bunch here. I get a 911 call, Domestic Disturbance and units are en route. The first thing I do is make sure the female is safe, after I have confirmed the location of where this occured and then where she is. I start getting a description of the male and weapons info and how he is threatening to hurt himself. In fact, I have her on the line and safe I'm getting all I can! Vehicles he could poss drive and the knife description he owns and what drugs he is known to use. You name it... It's going in the call.

Then I get the message from the radio dispatcher 'Per officer If female is safe you can hang up.' So I do just that. I don't agree with it. I still have questions but I learned I don't questions Officer's or Sargent's or my Supervisor's. I do what they say.

I send a message to the radio dispatcher and the officer that I was no longer on the line with her as requested. Then I get the message from the officer. 'Once you determined she was safe and her location your job ends at that moment.'

Really?????

So Smarty Officer did you copy his description that came just after I determined she was safe and out of danger? Did you copy the next update that he wouldn't let her leave the house to call police or security? And, did you copy the update about how he had a knife, with the size of the blade and threatening to cut himself all up!!!!?? Tell me you didn't need that info?

Ok, I have vented..but please Officer's out there tell me... Would you want that info.. or just get the address and hang up? Cause, it's officer's that do this to me in here that make me question every extra question I ask!

Bartering 4 No Calls - Dispatcher

2009-10-30T09:45:00.000-07:00

It was an innocent enough morning as my partner and I are on the radio logging the morning day folks on. I think some of them have forgotten how to log on to their vehicles, but I digress. My screen is filling up, the units are loggin on, the calls are coming in and I relax in my chair as I get them all handled.

Then we hear it! The call comes in, the dispatcher is yelling (don't ask me why!), there's an accident with injuries. The other channel operator says it first "Don't send it to me!"

I reply "Why not?"

"I don't want it!"

"and you think I do?"

"I'm covering 3 area's!" She exclaims

"I've got 2" and I up her "and I have parole units!"

"I have the wagon and detectives!"

So I reply... "I have Crime Suprresion units logged on and THERE WORKING!"

Her reply - "Oh you win!"

We both won - Accident on the Highway!!! Not our territory! We never even saw the call on our screen's. The dispatcher on phones was laughing at us waiting for us to finish and then piped up.. It's neither!

Megans Law - Dispatcher

2009-10-26T12:57:00.000-07:00

You gotta love the call! Female calls in wanting to verify the website we gave her for megan's law. I read it to her and she still says she is coming up with the wrong site. So I type it in myself and get to the right site! I have her erase and retype it in her address bar this time pheonticly spelling it for her and again, wrong site!

Finally, near pulling my hair out she tells me - You would think yahoo would have the site!

It dawns on me that she is actually on the search line typing in the website address. Of course it would bring up a pay-to-use site!! So I have her go to the address tool bar and type in the website and boom - you hear it in her voice!

She exclaims out loud and I say it! I didn't mean for it to come out of my mouth but I am so thankful that she laughed out loud.. and agreed with me!

What did I say? "Thats just a blonde kind of thing!"