# The Charles Ramsey 911 Call - Why the hate for the dispatcher? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 8, 2013, 8:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776 "2013-05-08T08:48:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![cougar58](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@cougar58](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cougar58)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/41 "2013-05-08T23:30:46Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > I dunno. I assume there’s some kind of protocol for this. I mean, if that protocol is “go with the least crazy-sounding caller” then OK; it’s just that I’m not sure that’s a really great standard to use when you’re dealing with extremely emotional people who are calling in the middle of major emergencies. Cleveland PD has 1,600 police officers. divided by 3 = 533 officers per shift. There is absolutely zero possibility that CPD had 533 officers on high or medium priority calls at any point in time. Just look at the crime section of the newspaper, or the CPD web page, where previous 24 hour activities are listed. A fatal shooting every 3-4 days, 20-30 altercations, 2 rapes, 150 thefts, 4 armed robberies, 16 pit bull maulings, 20 drug busts (handled by vice, not patrol). Divide those by 24, and you get the picture. An officer responding to pit bull shredding a neighbors poodle doesn’t trump a ten year kidnapping victim - esp when the abductor is due back any minute. Most USA PD’s use a CAD (Computer Aided Dispatch) system. which monitors the locations of all patrol cars, and whether they are in service, available, and at what priority level (1 thru 4) of an active call they are currently on, via in car laptops and GPS. Level 1 is officer needs help, 2= crime in progress 3= minor traffic 4= very low priority. No way did CPD have 533 officers on level 1 and 2 active calls when Amanda was on the line. PS CPD started installing LandSeaAir GPS tracking & software in patrol cars in 2010. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/42 "2013-05-08T23:44:18Z")
> [@Disposable Hero](#): > > Interesting stuff, you should do an ‘Ask the emergency dispatcher’ thread. > > I think a lot of it comes down to the fact that like the emergency services in general its not an exact science, its a job about people at the end of the day and we all know how problematic that can be! Agreed! I know a little about call forecasting and occupancy levels as a result of my job, and I’d be very interested to read such a thread. ---
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/43 "2013-05-09T06:13:39Z")
> [@cougar58](#): > > Cleveland PD has 1,600 police officers. divided by 3 = 533 officers per shift. Nope. Not unless all those officers are working 7 days a week in perpetuity. 5/7 = (about) .7 .7 \* 533 = 373 ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 10:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/44 "2013-05-09T10:45:47Z")
You need more or less 4 shifts to cover a 7 day week in perpetuity. That allows for covering sick leave and vacations as well as pulling some officers off the road for training sessions from time to time. And nowhere near all police officers are patrol officers available for dispatch by 9-1-1. There are the senior admin types at HQ, some of the crime scene types are sworn officers (some are civilians employees), detectives following up major crimes, K9 handlers, marine patrol, air support, financial crimes specialists, training unit, cell guards at police lock-up, etc… Different departments might have differing break-downs. I’d estimate at least 1/3 of officers working at any given time are not eligible for dispatch… possibly more. Regardless, our smaller department routinely – every day and multiple times per day – receives calls for service and there is no available unit. Either we must wait for an available officer or divert someone, depending upon the priority and protocols. And we have 10 different priority levels for calls. The highest is for immediate threat to life. Anything short of that gets bumped down at least one notch. Top priority calls are rare. ---
**Author:** ![Molesworth\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9dc877/32.png) [@Molesworth\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Molesworth_2)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 12:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/45 "2013-05-09T12:04:59Z")
I have no problem with the dispatcher being a bit sceptical. They get calls all the time from people claiming that they’re the Zodiac Killer, the Lindbergh Baby, Lord Lucan, Harold Holt, Elvis Presley, Luke Skywalker… The list goes on. ---
**Author:** ![Honesty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f04885/32.png) [@Honesty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honesty)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/46 "2013-05-09T12:27:59Z")
> [@Saraya](#): > > Black people - always saying stupid shit and screwing it up for other black people. Wow. - Honesty ---
**Author:** ![Iggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iggy/32/3364_2.png) [@Iggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Iggy)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 1:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/47 "2013-05-09T13:04:57Z")
> [@Disposable Hero](#): > > Interesting stuff, you should do an ‘Ask the emergency dispatcher’ thread. I did one in February. It’s over in —\> [Ask the 9-1-1 Operator…](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=681990) in MPSIMS. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/48 "2013-05-09T13:11:15Z")
> [@Honesty](#): > > Wow. > > - Honesty Yeah I don’t see anyone saying that the Blue Collar Tour people are screwing it up for other white people. As a matter of fact, I thought that perhaps this dude may have a future with them if he’s always this consistently entertaining. Just a funny but down to earth average dude. ---
**Author:** ![alexandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e68b1a/32.png) [@alexandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alexandra)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2013, 9:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/49 "2013-05-10T09:44:50Z")
> [@Honesty](#): > > Wow. > > - Honesty I don’t even get how Ramsey was stupid - maybe inappropriate, but that was quite funny. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/50 "2013-05-11T13:39:14Z")
> [@tdn](#): > > I’m not going to refer to you as an idiot, but you’re clearly not coming off as a genius here. It has been pointed out to you multiple times which call the OP is referring to, and you pig-headedly plow on with your own agenda, ignoring the bloody obvious. > > It’s time you started getting the point. And she “plowed on through” likely because she already had a bunch of things to post and didn’t have time to read anything in the meantime. And, honestly, I hadn’t heard anything negative about the first dispatcher, so I understand her confusion. ---
**Author:** ![enomaj](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/59ef9b/32.png) [@enomaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enomaj)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2013, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776/51 "2013-05-12T06:14:51Z")
> [@alexandra](#): > > I don’t even get how Ramsey was stupid - maybe inappropriate, but that was quite funny. I think he related a truism regarding race relations. In a perfect world, White women would run into Black men’s arms all the time. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-charles-ramsey-911-call-why-the-hate-for-the-dispatcher/657776.md?page=2)