Coral Springs 911 Call Center Supervisor Suspended, Dispatchers Fired After Botched Response
CORAL SPRINGS (CBSMiami) – When a bullet shattered her back red VW window and almost hit her head, Guadalupe Herrera called 911.
Trouble was Coral Springs police officers never came to help.
After a lengthy investigation into how her emergency call was handled, the department has fired two dispatchers and disciplined a supervisor who had a Netflix movie streaming up on one of her screens while the incident unfolded.
"It's something we are not proud of and needed to be looked into," said Coral Springs Police Chief Clyde Parry.
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On Tuesday, police released the 911 calls and we hear for the first time what the victim said and how dispatchers responded.
"Something blew through my car. I'm shocked," Herrera tells a male dispatcher.
"Can you see it?" he asks.
"It's a metal piece. I'm so scared. It made a hole in my wheel," she tells him.
But instead of classifying the call as a "shooting," the dispatcher logs it a "suspicious incident" giving it low priority.
When no police arrived, Herrera called again, telling a different dispatcher, "I don't know what to do. What if they shoot again?"
Finally, Herrera gives up waiting and tells a dispatcher on a final call she's driving herself to the police station.
As a result of what happened, supervisor Julie Vidaud, who had the Netflix film up on a screen, was given a two day suspension.
The police chief said although she had a spotless record they hold supervisors to the highest standards.
The department no longer allows dispatchers access to streaming services.
The victim has hired an attorney and is pursuing a civil suit. CBS4 spoke with him by phone.
"They failed in their duties. It's negligence, if not criminal," Brian Pakett said.
The shooting was random. Police say the suspect, Kyriakos Manolas, is charged with attempted murder.
