Police response time

[Kindrox]

A man freaked my wife out today (she runs a gift/invitation/special order store in a town square here). He came in and asked to see a flask in a case, but because he was drunk his speech was heavily slurred and my wife couldn’t understand anything he said. He was also sweating very heavily, and the weather here is not that hot. Then he took to staring at her, and finally left. Fortunately there were two other customers in the store.

She called me and asked that I come to the store, so I wrapped things up and headed there (about a 30 minute drive from where I work). I called as I was getting ready to go, and the phone was constantly busy, very unusual. After about 10 minutes of that I called the non-emergency line of the local PD, and explained about the man in the store and that now I could not call the store because the phone was constantly busy. I asked that they send an officer over to look things over. I figgured they could beat me to the store by at least 10 minutes.

An easy request since she is practically across from the police department.

I got there 15 minutes later, and before any police officer. It turned out the wife was on the phone with the police department’s community people asking about self defense classes and to get a visit from the officer who looks over buildings and recommends any security changes.

Although the call was to the non-emergency number, I felt it deserved a priority response considering the guy. That said, it took the police about 30 minutes to show up. Hopefully it would have been sooner if I dialed 911 for that city.

So after all that we stopped by the gun store and got her hooked up with a concealed holster for her PPK. It fits really nicely in the small of her back. And the officer that did respond said to dial 911 and then hang up.

Real life is slowly taking all the gun non-sense she got growing up.

 

[TexasRifleman]

First thing I'd suggest is that you get her call waiting......

 

[chipperi]

Thats why I got my permit. I had to call the police a year or so ago, Hung up with 911 turned the scanner on...10 mins later the officer was dispatched...15 min later he arrived...never stopped radioed all was ok and drove away. he never got out of the car, he might have gotten a little snow on his dumb looking Smokey the bear hat.

So the saying should be "When seconds count, the police are hours away...then they might not do anything."

 

[Geronimo45]

Hmm... after a very minor traffic accident (no injuries, very minor vehicle damage), I called the police. Response time was three minutes or so, IIRC. The city court was, however, less than a half-mile away, so that probably accounts for the quick response.

All depends on your location and your police, I guess.

 

[acdodd]

you're lucky they even showed up.
If it would have been me I would have called 911 to start with.
I would much rather have error on the side of caution then to have something happen to my wife.
Non emergency call around here would probably have not gotten a response.
My son called about a domestic situation and it took them over 6 hours to show up.
Then they couldn't do anything to help.
When my truck was broken into they wouldn't come out.
Took a report over the phone and said to call my insurance company.
I tried to get a copy of the report from them and never got one.
In their defense they are stretched pretty thin in the county.
I do have a way to get them out.
Call in a naked woman running around and you will have more police than you ever imagine.
AC

 

[Zoogster]

Police in many locations are 10 minutes off. They might be 3-5 min away, but it takes at least that long before they dispatch an officer most of the time.
In some areas they are much further. In some bad areas they have been known to not respond on foot until an additional unit shows up so they can be even longer.

Once they finaly arrive it is often going to take them a couple minutes to assess the situation, especialy if it is behind closed or locked doors.

So police are very handy, but personal protection they are not. I am not sure where the notion came from that they are everyone's guardian angel, but that is entirely false.
Police keep the peace, and restore order. That however only happens quite some time after most situations are in progress. So they protect society as a whole, but the individual is on thier own.

The whole protection of the individual thing is a myth often promoted by political entities with an agenda, as well as departments seeking budget increases.

 

[target1911]

Here in FT Worth....you can call the non emergency number and 99% of the time they will tell you to hang up and call 911. It has happened to me a few times for very NON-emergency things.
I would rather call 911 and have tell me to call Non-E than the other way around. It only takes about 15 seconds.

 

[CNYCacher]

About 2 hours ago, I was laying in bed and heard a vehicle run into a parked van in front of my house. After I went outside and saw that what I thought had occurred had indeed happened, I called the police. The conversation went like this:

"Police"
"Hi, I am on <redacted street name> and someone just ran into a parked car and drove off."
"Hold on please. . . (in background) Any available unit in the vicinity of <street>, possible hit-n-run involving a parked vehicle, got the guy on the phone right now. (back to me) Sorry about that, wanted to get someone rolling for ya'."

In the time it took to briefly explain that I hadn't seen the vehicle that did the hit-n-run, describe the damage and give the victim van's tag number, an officer arrived on the scene. They found the truck that had done it too, one of my neighbors actually saw it happen and pointed them in the right direction (behind the house across the street).

I am very happy with our police force here. I have called them a few times over the years, and this is a typical response.

 

[mike101]

When I lived in Chicago, about 15 years ago, I called 911 to report a crime in progress. It was 2pm on a Tuesday. No one answered the phone. I hung up and tried back. Still, no answer. Sure glad they have that gun ban.

You all recall the Pettit family in Connecticutt, I'm sure. In the morning, one of the home-invading miscreants and Mrs. Pettit went to the bank, to withdraw money. It was reported that Mrs. Pettit mangaed to communicate to the teller that she was in trouble. The bank notified the police. By the time the police arrived at the house, it was on fire, and Mrs. Pettit and her two daughters had been murdered.

 

[Kindrox]

My lesson learned was yes, call the emergency number. I don't know the officer would have appeared sooner though, and yeah I gotta get call waiting.

 

[Vonderek]

I got in a car accident in Hollywood Florida...got run into by a city employee driving a city pickup. It happened less than a mile from the police station. We both pulled over into a parking lot and I called...and called...and called. 40 minutes later a policeman showed up, wouldn't write a report. Even after telling him my lower back was messed up and showing him the back of my car was messed up. Either laziness or protecting a fellow city employee.

 

[Deanimator]

I am very happy with our police force here. I have called them a few times over the years, and this is a typical response.

I'm pretty happy with my local PD. They don't appear to commit any serious crimes and they come relatively quickly.

That being said, I might just as well throw myself off of the bridge onto I-90 as expect them to "protect" me as an individual. It's simply not reasonable, since it's simply not POSSIBLE.

And that's in a town where the police appear to feel they have a duty to the public.

In some place like Chicago, not so much...

 

[Colt46]

Sadly, cops have no duty to protect the individual

Only the common good. A case in chicago where an estranged husband killed his wife right in front of two peace officers that were there to protect the woman while the man moved his belongings out of their apartment proved beyond a doubt that you are on your own.

 

[TallPine]

So police are very handy, but personal protection they are not. I am not sure where the notion came from that they are everyone's guardian angel

Mostly from the police themselves - as in, "you don't need a gun, just call 911" etc etc etc

 

[MD_Willington]

Suppose the County Sheriff could get to my place in 30 minutes if he drove at 90 MPH...

 

[usmarine0352_2005]

"When seconds count, Cops are only minutes away."

I saw that once and thought it was hilarious. But, seriously, Cops do their best. And are usually unjustly criticized.

 

[ClickClickD'oh]

Completely OT, but: Slurred speach, sweating and spacing out are all common symptoms of a person experiencing diabetic shock onset. Often confused, even by the popos, for intoxication.

PS: EMTs always arrive fast.

 

[Kindrox]

I don't knock the police for long response times. To some degree we get what we pay for, and to some degree average response times will never be 30 seconds or less.

Who I knock are the clueless who parrot the line about just calling the cops. The incident really brought the issue home for my wife because she realized that if she does need the police, she had better be prepared for 30 minutes of dealing with it on her own until they arrive.

And her mom can't use the police crap anymore because we done that, been there.

 

[pax]

Kindrox ~

Yep, that sounds like a pretty healthy attitude.

I like the police around here. They're good guys and the institutional ethos is solidly good.

But the nearest police substation is about 30 miles from my front door no matter which way I turn out of the driveway. That means a police response here is a realistic 15 to 45 minutes away and a really unfortunate one might be a full 60 minutes away or more. If anything happens out here, I'm on my own for at least that long.

When it comes right down to it, if you ever have any sort of difficulty, there's only one person in the world that you know for sure will be right there when it happens: YOU. Better make sure that person knows what to do and how to do it.

pax

 

[Templar223]

Now for some good news...

Some sad stories in this thread.

Here in Champaign-Urbana, IL, on "hot" calls, you can expect a response time in less than a few minutes.

9-1-1 telecommunicators are professional and efficient. Police are prompt and generally well-trained and -mannered.

GF had a stalker attempting to force entry on her house. Called 9-1-1 after arming herself. She said the dispatcher said officers were pulling up less than ONE minute after explaining the nature of the call. There was a dogpile outside less than a minute after that. That was impressive.

I called them late one night after hearing a very angry "B-itch, you're gonna get shot if you don't shut up" after listening to a very nasty shouting match. They were walking up to the house after parking about a block away less than two minutes after I hung up. (I sat outside on the porch and watched them chase the bad actor and bring him back... you can't beat "COPS" live - oh, and he had an ankle bracelet on for "home confinement"...)

Called them another time for a big gang fight a block away (yes, GF lives on the fringe of the hood). No "guns" and they were there in about three to four minutes... about a minute after I dispersed the fighting thugs with 951 lumens of goodness from 3/4 of a block away as they were threatening another neighbor - and older male - that told them to knock off the attack on the residents of a dope house. Great way to celebrate Christmas Eve, eh?

County units can usually be to most calls in a few minutes on hot calls. Remarkable, in fact. Unless they are tied up on other hot calls or you live way in the boonies, someone will be there in five to ten minutes, tops.

I'm happy with the response times, but I still carry my own gun.

John

 

[yesit'sloaded]

Our police department is one of the most currupt, inefficient excuses for law enforcement out there. Most of this has nothing to do with the officers and everything to do with the city government. Our mayor thinks the PD is his toy to play with and he has his own gun and badge and dresses up and plays cop. He also has tanked the budget until the city is 3 million dollars in debt and crime is skyrocketing. He wanted to ban gun shows in town and tried to call out the national guard one time (yes I as well as everyone else know that the governor is who does that). He also has personal vendettas and uses the police force to harass individuals who disagree with him. Where do I live you ask? Jackson, Mississippi.

 

[The-Fly]

The local law enforcement in my area is highly professional and hard working. But they cant be every where at once, and even say so. My sheriff is very pro ccw because of this, and tells people the police cant guarantee that they will be there in time.

 

[Beachmaster]

The main problem with response times in my area has nothing to do with the Police, Deputies, Highway Patrol, or the Dispatchers themselves. It has to do with the dispatch system, and the fact that we are located in a Tri-state mixed area! If you call 911 on your cell phone, depending on which cell tower you connected to, you may get either Arizona, Nevada, or California dispatch. Then it takes another minute to get you connected to the right state. then its another moment while they ask if its a police or fire matter. By the time you are done, it can take 2 or 3 minutes just to get to the correct dispatch person!

If you call from your house is not that much better. While we do have an modern dispatch system that knows your home location, the dispatcher then have to figure out if you are on City Property (so they can dispatch the City Police), County Property (so they can call in the Sherriff), Indian Tribal Property (so they can call in the Tribal Police) or if the call is about a vehicle problem on a road, they need to figure out if the State Police have jurisdiction.

Listening to my scanner is a real scream sometimes!

 

[romma]

The night that the crack smokin', car and house hitting yo-yos' woke us up at 2am, I was bored to tears waiting for the police to arrive while holding them at gun-point...

 

[chipperi]

Where do I live you ask? Jackson, Mississippi.

Damn you just described the Kingsport Tennessee Police Dept