911 Operator Training for "Man with a gun" Call

[tommy610]

Does anyone know how 911 operators (in PA) are trained regarding the handling of someone calling and saying "there is a man with a gun"? I'd be curious to know. I know you all know why I'd ask this... they should be told to follow-up quickly with "what is he doing with the gun?" and then decide from there whether it is a situation or not. If the answer is "he's walking around the Produce section feeling up the cantaloupes", well, then, the operator should say "call me back if he starts throwing them in the air and shooting at them".

It seems, from the accounts posted on here, that they dispatch an officer no matter what the "man with a gun" is doing.

As I typed this, I remembered that they always dispatch if there is a hang-up call. That makes sense. So, maybe it is the case, if you call 911, a cop is coming, no matter what you say?

[Curmudgeon]

"Cry, havoc! And let slip the dogs of war."

[poorman]

This is so weird.....

Ok so when I woke up this morning I had this exact idea, I was like that's a really good idea. Fast forward till now, and having completely forgotten it the whole day, but I still remembered that I had a good idea, until now seeing this post it came back to me.

[DC2.2GSR]

"call me back if he starts throwing them in the air and shooting at them".

hahahahah!! that's great. perfect response.

[The Unknown 1087]

When I was Oc'ing in wawa and someone called the police, the dispatch put it under "Suspicious Activity".

[Steve in PA]

The dispatchers don't have the option to disregard a call like you describe. Sure they can ask questions, but the call will still be forwarded to the police dept.

The officers are then the ones who can say.........."we'll respond when he does something besides feeling melons". The officer may respond to check it out for himself, by that I mean responding and observing what the person is doing. If he's doing nothing more than feeling melons...........no interaction is required.

[tlgpa]

As I typed this, I remembered that they always dispatch if there is a hang-up call. That makes sense. So, maybe it is the case, if you call 911, a cop is coming, no matter what you say?

It make a lot of sense. There are many situations where someone is able to dial 911 but unable to speak.

I agree that the question "What is he doing with the gun?" should be asked. It's very important to know. Either way, it should be left up to the police to determine whether (and how) they need to respond.

[FMJ]

Well, they'll have to come up with some sort of filter I would think. The more folks carry or open carry, the more misallocation of resources there will be. Forget the gunned man feeling melons, there's a robbery in progress a few miles away.

[JohnUSCG]

Well, they'll have to come up with some sort of filter I would think. The more folks carry or open carry, the more misallocation of resources there will be. Forget the gunned man feeling melons, there's a robbery in progress a few miles away.

The 'filter', as said by Steve, is the officer. 911 dispatchers have NO authority or discretion when it comes to incomming 911 calls. Each and every one must not only be documented but also dispatched (or pended) within a certain timeframe. (Usually 90seconds from disconnect).

Officers are able to use their discretion (as well as department policy) what they do with the calls they are dispatched to.

3 words that permiate the world we live in. Liability, Liability, Liability.

[FMJ]

The 'filter', as said by Steve, is the officer. 911 dispatchers have NO authority or discretion when it comes to incomming 911 calls. Each and every one must not only be documented but also dispatched (or pended) within a certain timeframe. (Usually 90seconds from disconnect).

Officers are able to use their discretion (as well as department policy) what they do with the calls they are dispatched to.

3 words that permiate the world we live in. Liability, Liability, Liability.

I agree. Perhaps then it's a matter of the dispatcher determining whats an actual emergency?
A man with a gun grocery shopping doesn't sound to me like it warrents a 911 call.