911 dispatcher cuts off call from supermarket worker during Buffalo shooting: now she can be fired
'19.05.2022'
Nadezhda Verbitskaya
A supermarket employee accused the dispatcher of hanging up when a woman called 911 during a racist shooting at a store last week, reports New York Times.
The controller, whose identity was not released, was placed on administrative leave on Monday following an internal investigation. “She will have a disciplinary hearing on May 30th where she will be filing her resignation,” Peter Anderson, Erie County Executive, said Wednesday.
The reason for the investigation was the comments of Latisha Rogers, assistant office manager of the Tops supermarket, where a man recently shot 10 black people. Payton Gendron, 18, is accused of driving 320 kilometers from his home in Conklin to kill black people, fueled by a racist belief in so-called replacement theory.
Ms. Rogers, she said, called 911 while hiding from the shooter. She whispered into the phone, hoping to elude his attention. The dispatcher, assures the assistant office manager, reprimanded her.
“She yelled at me: “Why are you whispering? Nothing to whisper." I told her, “Ma'am, he's still in the store. He shoots. I fear for my life. I don't want him to hear me. Could you please send help?" She got mad at me and hung up the phone.” Ms. Rogers called her boyfriend and asked him to dial 911.
On the subject: A strange manifesto and legal weapons: what is known about the shooter who killed 10 people in Buffalo
An executive branch spokesman said that during the course of the investigation, they had verified the call. And it was not clear who hung up, besides, the actions of the dispatcher did not affect the dispatch of the order. Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph A. Gramaglia said Sunday that the first call to 911 came at 14:30 p.m. and police arrived at the store at 14:31 p.m.
However, the county made the decision to fire the dispatcher, who had worked there for eight years. Madison Ruffo, a civil servants union spokeswoman representing the dispatcher, declined to comment.
