An emergency dispatcher in DeKalb, GA is under fire following a 911 call from a good Samaritan that had just witnessed a man rip a woman from her car and take off. In the call, the dispatcher proceeded to argue with the man over whether what he'd just witnessed was a carjacking (a type of robbery involving a weapon) or a theft (the lack of a weapon).
By the book, the lack of a weapon indicates that this is a non-violent crime. Despite this technicality, though, the difference between a robbery (which by definition involves a violent aspect) and carjacking is much thinner than the difference between a robbery and a theft (which doesn't involve violence). That makes the police response, or lack thereof, somewhat alarming.
According to the witness, Willie Hubbard, there was roughly a 38-minute wait for the police to arrive, because of how the dispatcher relayed information to the officers.
"So we sat there approximately 38 minutes before the first officer even came. And then when the sergeant came she was explaining to us that it was called to them as a theft not a robbery. And I was like, 'That's crazy,'" Hubbard told WAGA, the local Fox affiliate.
James Conroy, the interim police chief, acknowledged that there was a mistake made somewhere.
"Looking at the call information, it does appear there was a delayed response of somewhere over 30 minutes, which in my opinion is not acceptable in a carjacking case," Conroy told Fox 5. The situation is being investigated by internal affairs.
Scroll down for the news report on the incident from Fox 5.
By the book, the lack of a weapon indicates that this is a non-violent crime. Despite this technicality, though, the difference between a robbery (which by definition involves a violent aspect) and carjacking is much thinner than the difference between a robbery and a theft (which doesn't involve violence). That makes the police response, or lack thereof, somewhat alarming.
According to the witness, Willie Hubbard, there was roughly a 38-minute wait for the police to arrive, because of how the dispatcher relayed information to the officers.
"So we sat there approximately 38 minutes before the first officer even came. And then when the sergeant came she was explaining to us that it was called to them as a theft not a robbery. And I was like, 'That's crazy,'" Hubbard told WAGA, the local Fox affiliate.
James Conroy, the interim police chief, acknowledged that there was a mistake made somewhere.
"Looking at the call information, it does appear there was a delayed response of somewhere over 30 minutes, which in my opinion is not acceptable in a carjacking case," Conroy told Fox 5. The situation is being investigated by internal affairs.
Scroll down for the news report on the incident from Fox 5.
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