Gulf Coast Community Foundation of Venice
601 Tamiami Trail South, Venice, Florida 34285
941.486.4600 GulfCoastCF.org
Sometimes it takes a tragedy to make a community ask, Is this the best we can do for our citizens?
The January 2008 abduction, rape, and murder of 21-year-old North Port wife and mother Denise Amber Lee was one such tragedy. Though calls to 911 were placed by eyewitnesses, no patrol cars were dispatched because of inefficiencies in a 911 call center.
In the aftermath of Denise Lee’s murder, Gulf Coastcommissioned an independent study of the 911 system in Florida.
“Florida 911: The State of Emergency” analyzed all components of emergency response that are activated when a person in need of assistance tries to call 911 in Florida. This marked the first time that 911 in Florida had been analyzed from the placement of a call to the arrival of the first responder on the scene.
Gulf Coast’s study found that Florida’s 911 system was not a “system” at all, but rather a patchwork of state and local agencies, protocols, and technologies cobbled together to respond to 911 calls. It provided policymakers and advocates like the Denise Amber Lee Foundation, which was created by Denise’s husband Nathan, with objective analysis to support their impassioned efforts to reform the 911 system.
Thanks to the work of state Senator Nancy Detert, state Representative Ken Roberson, Nathan Lee, and others, a new law was signed in May 2010 that will require uniform training and certification of 911 operators statewide. The new standards will help close a major gap in Florida’s emergency 911 system—one of many that are identified in Gulf Coast’s study.
Link:
http://www.gulfcoastcf.org/documents/911_Reform_overview.pdf
Showing posts with label FL Sen Nancy Detert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label FL Sen Nancy Detert. Show all posts
Friday, January 21, 2011
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
Editorial in today's Sun
02/23/10
A good model for public accountability
OUR POSITION: The state Legislature and public agencies can learn something from North Port Police Chief Terry Lewis' response to his agency's mistake.
Government agencies make mistakes. Businesses make mistakes. People make mistakes all the time. Everyone knows that.
When they make mistakes and when the mistakes have a public impact, the public can reasonably expect certain things occur: that there is some form of appropriate sanction or penalty, and that steps are taken to ensure the mistakes will not be repeated.
We call that accountability. We can't prevent mistakes, but we can put new procedures or systems in place that make the same mistakes less likely in the future. That's what happens, ideally, after a plane crash, when the brakes on automobiles don't work, after banks using unsound financial practices shake the economy or someone tampers with a bottle of Tylenol.
The critical points are to acknowledge the error, deal with the immediate impacts and take steps to prevent a repeat. It sounds pretty straightforward, but it's amazing how difficult that process can be in practice.
Public agencies looking for a good model of accountability in response to mistakes should pay attention to recent actions taken by North Port Police Chief Terry Lewis following a recent botched 911 emergency call. Lewis got it right.
On the night of Dec. 11 last year, a call came into the North Port police station alerting the dispatcher to a car off the road with a body nearby at a semi-isolated spot. The callers couldn't remember the exact name of the street, but got something close to it.
Rather than telling the caller to wait for an officer at the store where they had made the call, the dispatcher tried to locate a street with a similar name. Unable to find it, she simply gave up. No officer was contacted.
Some 16 hours later, another call came in and the body was located. The driver was dead, but no one knew if his life could have been saved if the police response had come quicker.
Lewis immediately took responsibility for the mistake -- caused by the dispatcher, not the 911 system. He apologized. He took time to review the incident and eventually fired the dispatcher, who is now appealing her dismissal.
Although he defended his call center system -- noting operators received far more training than is required by the state -- Lewis asked outside agencies from Lee and Marion counties to review the operations. Just over a week ago, they recommended another course be added to the basic training and a more-structured "quality assurance" system be set up to monitor ongoing operations. Lewis said these steps would be taken.
Just after the incident, Lewis acknowledged "the damage (it had) done to citizen's confidence in the department." By taking the right steps, he is restoring that confidence. He got it right.
That model of "what to do" is one we hope Florida legislators follow as they review bills sponsored by state Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, and Rep. Ken Roberson, R-Port Charlotte, that would improve emergency 911 call training throughout the state. Lawmakers sidestepped the issue last session. They need to get it right this year.
Mistakes happen. It's relatively easy to acknowledge and apologize for them. In the end, though, what matters most is that reasonable, intelligent, appropriate steps are taken to make sure the same mistakes don't happen again.
That's what accountability is all about.
http://www.sunnewspapers.net/articles/edStory.aspx?articleID=452980
A good model for public accountability
OUR POSITION: The state Legislature and public agencies can learn something from North Port Police Chief Terry Lewis' response to his agency's mistake.
Government agencies make mistakes. Businesses make mistakes. People make mistakes all the time. Everyone knows that.
When they make mistakes and when the mistakes have a public impact, the public can reasonably expect certain things occur: that there is some form of appropriate sanction or penalty, and that steps are taken to ensure the mistakes will not be repeated.
We call that accountability. We can't prevent mistakes, but we can put new procedures or systems in place that make the same mistakes less likely in the future. That's what happens, ideally, after a plane crash, when the brakes on automobiles don't work, after banks using unsound financial practices shake the economy or someone tampers with a bottle of Tylenol.
The critical points are to acknowledge the error, deal with the immediate impacts and take steps to prevent a repeat. It sounds pretty straightforward, but it's amazing how difficult that process can be in practice.
Public agencies looking for a good model of accountability in response to mistakes should pay attention to recent actions taken by North Port Police Chief Terry Lewis following a recent botched 911 emergency call. Lewis got it right.
On the night of Dec. 11 last year, a call came into the North Port police station alerting the dispatcher to a car off the road with a body nearby at a semi-isolated spot. The callers couldn't remember the exact name of the street, but got something close to it.
Rather than telling the caller to wait for an officer at the store where they had made the call, the dispatcher tried to locate a street with a similar name. Unable to find it, she simply gave up. No officer was contacted.
Some 16 hours later, another call came in and the body was located. The driver was dead, but no one knew if his life could have been saved if the police response had come quicker.
Lewis immediately took responsibility for the mistake -- caused by the dispatcher, not the 911 system. He apologized. He took time to review the incident and eventually fired the dispatcher, who is now appealing her dismissal.
Although he defended his call center system -- noting operators received far more training than is required by the state -- Lewis asked outside agencies from Lee and Marion counties to review the operations. Just over a week ago, they recommended another course be added to the basic training and a more-structured "quality assurance" system be set up to monitor ongoing operations. Lewis said these steps would be taken.
Just after the incident, Lewis acknowledged "the damage (it had) done to citizen's confidence in the department." By taking the right steps, he is restoring that confidence. He got it right.
That model of "what to do" is one we hope Florida legislators follow as they review bills sponsored by state Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, and Rep. Ken Roberson, R-Port Charlotte, that would improve emergency 911 call training throughout the state. Lawmakers sidestepped the issue last session. They need to get it right this year.
Mistakes happen. It's relatively easy to acknowledge and apologize for them. In the end, though, what matters most is that reasonable, intelligent, appropriate steps are taken to make sure the same mistakes don't happen again.
That's what accountability is all about.
http://www.sunnewspapers.net/articles/edStory.aspx?articleID=452980
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Dear Denise
It was a crazy week last week. All in all it was a very GOOD week. Dad and I drove to Tallahassee with Dave G Monday evening after work. Tuesday AM I spoke in front of a House committee. As you can imagine it was very emotional for me talking about you and how losing you has changed our lives (mostly Nathan, Noah and Adam's) forever. There is not a moment that I stop thinking of you. The House committee was very supportive and professional. Some members had funding concerns. I find that unbelievable. As far as we are concerned this is not a funding issue but a priority issue. They are already spending money for training anyway! A couple house members shot down the opposition quite effectively. I would never have been able to get thru it, if your spirit had not been with me giving me courage and strength.
That's what I admired most about you while you were alive. Your courage and strength should be an inspiration to women everywhere. Sadly, I did not realize just how courageous and strong you were while you were alive. I will never forgive myself for not having gotten to know you better. I knew you were shy and therefore I tried not to force you into talking unless you wanted to. I do remember that whenever you did have something to say it was always important. I also remember your grace. I never heard you say a negative thing about anyone. But, I honestly thought we would have years and years together of holidays and baseball games and that our bond would be forged through time. It breaks my heart we did not get to know each other better.
The house passed the bill through committee "unaminously". I cried tears of relief. It was so heartwarming. Someone said I should feel proud. But I do not. Our family would not be doing all the things we have been doing if we had not lost you. How could I feel pride in losing you? It is an odd feeling.
Coming home on Tuesday we stopped in Brandon for something to eat. Oh my gosh. Remember the day we went shopping? People do not realize we did not get to go shopping because of shortage of money. We only ever went shopping twice. The day in Ellenton and the day in Brandon. I thought we had years ahead for shopping and lunching. So I cried some more.
Anyhow, Nathan spoke in front of the Senate committee on Thursday. We watched it on TV. You would be proud of him, Denise. You were his soulmate. He's trying to move on and be the best dad he can. And Thursday night Dad and I got to go to Noah's T Ball practice. Oh my gosh. He reminds me so much of you. His smiles, his eyes, his mannerisms, his silliness.... He is silly and I remember how you used to smile and be downright silly. Full of fun. I just watch him and think of you. Friday AM I took the boys to school and Noah talked a mile a minute about you. He started with "My mommy is looking down on me. She sees everything I do." So, I let him chat and we chatted the whole way. Sadly, Adam was not a part of the conversation. I tried to lure him into it but he has no memories at all. People say how sad it is that you will not be here to see them grow. But I tell them you are here. I'm just profoundly heartbroken that they will not be able to ever experience your physical presence again. Your hugs and your smile.
I dreamt about you for the first time a couple of weeks ago. I have nightmares quite often and they are violent. I will not share them here. I have never dreamt about you though. So, the other night I had a very brief dream of you. You were standing near me and I asked if I could hug you one more time. We hugged and then I woke up. I wish I could hold on to that dream forever. I think of it everyday and it gets me through.
I love you, babydoll. And I miss you desperately.
That's what I admired most about you while you were alive. Your courage and strength should be an inspiration to women everywhere. Sadly, I did not realize just how courageous and strong you were while you were alive. I will never forgive myself for not having gotten to know you better. I knew you were shy and therefore I tried not to force you into talking unless you wanted to. I do remember that whenever you did have something to say it was always important. I also remember your grace. I never heard you say a negative thing about anyone. But, I honestly thought we would have years and years together of holidays and baseball games and that our bond would be forged through time. It breaks my heart we did not get to know each other better.
The house passed the bill through committee "unaminously". I cried tears of relief. It was so heartwarming. Someone said I should feel proud. But I do not. Our family would not be doing all the things we have been doing if we had not lost you. How could I feel pride in losing you? It is an odd feeling.
Coming home on Tuesday we stopped in Brandon for something to eat. Oh my gosh. Remember the day we went shopping? People do not realize we did not get to go shopping because of shortage of money. We only ever went shopping twice. The day in Ellenton and the day in Brandon. I thought we had years ahead for shopping and lunching. So I cried some more.
Anyhow, Nathan spoke in front of the Senate committee on Thursday. We watched it on TV. You would be proud of him, Denise. You were his soulmate. He's trying to move on and be the best dad he can. And Thursday night Dad and I got to go to Noah's T Ball practice. Oh my gosh. He reminds me so much of you. His smiles, his eyes, his mannerisms, his silliness.... He is silly and I remember how you used to smile and be downright silly. Full of fun. I just watch him and think of you. Friday AM I took the boys to school and Noah talked a mile a minute about you. He started with "My mommy is looking down on me. She sees everything I do." So, I let him chat and we chatted the whole way. Sadly, Adam was not a part of the conversation. I tried to lure him into it but he has no memories at all. People say how sad it is that you will not be here to see them grow. But I tell them you are here. I'm just profoundly heartbroken that they will not be able to ever experience your physical presence again. Your hugs and your smile.
I dreamt about you for the first time a couple of weeks ago. I have nightmares quite often and they are violent. I will not share them here. I have never dreamt about you though. So, the other night I had a very brief dream of you. You were standing near me and I asked if I could hug you one more time. We hugged and then I woke up. I wish I could hold on to that dream forever. I think of it everyday and it gets me through.
I love you, babydoll. And I miss you desperately.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Today's Sun
This in today's Port Charlotte Sun. My opinion at the end of article.
link: http://www.sunnewspapers.net/articles/edStory.aspx?articleID=437261
05/12/09
Legislature fails on 911 certification
OUR POSITION: Statewide, mandatory 911 dispatcher certification got pushed aside in the Legislature this session. Let's do better next year.
It's no surprise that a bill calling for mandatory training of all 911 emergency call center dispatchers in the state was sponsored by local legislators.
We in Charlotte, Sarasota and DeSoto counties are all too aware of the potential horrors associated with a breakdown of the emergency call system.
However, the passion to provide a higher level of public safety apparently becomes diluted with distance and time. It also can be hard to counterpunch past Tallahassee lobbyists. That's the way it goes in the capital.
Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, who sponsored a Senate bill this year requiring state certification of all 911 operators, said the lobbyist for the state's emergency operators pushed hard for changes in the wording of the bill.
Rep. Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda, who co-sponsored a House bill with freshman Rep. Ken Roberson, R-Port Charlotte, told Sun staffer Ed Scott this week, "There are some lobbyists for the 911 operators who interfered with the process greatly."
The bill just didn't have the traction, or didn't get enough of a push, so it stalled in the final days of a session that concentrated so much on budget problems.
It was Kreegel who took the lead on 911 dispatcher certification last year in the wake of the murder of Denise Amber Lee.
By now, we know the story of how Lee was kidnapped from her North Port home in January 2008. A witness saw the 21-year-old woman struggling in a car with a man and called 911, but no officers were dispatched to the scene by the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
This mistake led to a campaign by Lee's family for greater accountability and uniform standards that might help restore confidence in a system that had failed them so badly.
Last year, Kreegel won passage for a bill that called for voluntary training, but it had no teeth and came with no funding, so it had little impact. This year, Roberson led the team effort, but still there was enough resistance and too many questions.
The bill will be back next year, and Kreegel thought the effort chances might smooth the path to passage. We hope so.
The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office insists its requirements for dispatchers exceed national standards. Sarasota County announced this week that its communications center had won certification from a national accreditation agency.
That's comforting, but we need to know that emergency dispatch has consistent -- and consistently high -- standards throughout the state. We have seen what can go wrong.
As Detert told the Sun, "It's unbelievable that something with this much common sense could not pass the Legislature."
Well put.
My opinion
Thank you, Charlotte Sun for keeping this story alive. It's extremely important not just for Charlotte County but for the whole state of Florida.
Thank you, Senator Detert, and Reps Roberson and Kreegel. God bless you for following your consciences by doing the right thing for the citizens of the state of Florida.
As most of you know the foundation has been traveling across the nation to tell Denise's story. So, many things went wrong and it's not just about training. From what I understand (and I've seen their training manuals for call takers and dispatchers) the CCSO does have an excellent training program. The problem the night Denise died goes deeper than training. They were not using the training they recieved and they were not using the technology they had at their fingertips. Why? Your guess is as good as mine. Hopefully Denise's death has not been in vain and they are using their CADs properly now, the way they were trained to use them. Also, hopefully BOLOs are being monitored 24/7. But it shouldn't have taken Denise's death to accomplish this. Again, the best training and technology in the world are absolutely worthless, if they are not being used.
I am of the opinion that even the new legislation that was presented this year fell short of what we're fighting for. The proposed law that failed gave the sheriff's and police departments until 2012 to step up. Who wants to wait until 2012? Several people died in just the past year in Florida due to 9-1-1 mishaps, not just Denise! Also, it would have allowed them to be pretty much "grandfathered" in. Heh!
Well, if anything, we've been told and we believe now that this is a national issue. So, dear Florida, you can be a leader in this or you can continue to be embarrassed and neglectful of your citizens. People will continue to die so long as call takers and dispatchers are not held to a standard. People will continue to die in canals, trunks and cars as long as we're not using GPS in cell phones.
Just so there's no doubt about it, there is no way we're going to drop this! We'll fight even harder this year and we'll be even stronger. Also, the law we propose will be much stronger. We had a lesson in politics this past year and we're not going to shut up. We're that motivated.
Aside to Governor Crist: I hear you're going to run for senator. I do hope you look into this issue for the benefit of the citizens of Florida. You've avoided it so far like an expert dancer. But you will not be able to avoid it forever. And it IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO! Step out of the meetings with the lobbyists in Tallahassee and meet with what Bill O'Reilly calls "the folks". Meet with Nathan and hear his story. His mission is a noble one.
Again, a big thank you to the Sun.
link: http://www.sunnewspapers.net/articles/edStory.aspx?articleID=437261
05/12/09
Legislature fails on 911 certification
OUR POSITION: Statewide, mandatory 911 dispatcher certification got pushed aside in the Legislature this session. Let's do better next year.
It's no surprise that a bill calling for mandatory training of all 911 emergency call center dispatchers in the state was sponsored by local legislators.
We in Charlotte, Sarasota and DeSoto counties are all too aware of the potential horrors associated with a breakdown of the emergency call system.
However, the passion to provide a higher level of public safety apparently becomes diluted with distance and time. It also can be hard to counterpunch past Tallahassee lobbyists. That's the way it goes in the capital.
Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, who sponsored a Senate bill this year requiring state certification of all 911 operators, said the lobbyist for the state's emergency operators pushed hard for changes in the wording of the bill.
Rep. Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda, who co-sponsored a House bill with freshman Rep. Ken Roberson, R-Port Charlotte, told Sun staffer Ed Scott this week, "There are some lobbyists for the 911 operators who interfered with the process greatly."
The bill just didn't have the traction, or didn't get enough of a push, so it stalled in the final days of a session that concentrated so much on budget problems.
It was Kreegel who took the lead on 911 dispatcher certification last year in the wake of the murder of Denise Amber Lee.
By now, we know the story of how Lee was kidnapped from her North Port home in January 2008. A witness saw the 21-year-old woman struggling in a car with a man and called 911, but no officers were dispatched to the scene by the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office.
This mistake led to a campaign by Lee's family for greater accountability and uniform standards that might help restore confidence in a system that had failed them so badly.
Last year, Kreegel won passage for a bill that called for voluntary training, but it had no teeth and came with no funding, so it had little impact. This year, Roberson led the team effort, but still there was enough resistance and too many questions.
The bill will be back next year, and Kreegel thought the effort chances might smooth the path to passage. We hope so.
The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office insists its requirements for dispatchers exceed national standards. Sarasota County announced this week that its communications center had won certification from a national accreditation agency.
That's comforting, but we need to know that emergency dispatch has consistent -- and consistently high -- standards throughout the state. We have seen what can go wrong.
As Detert told the Sun, "It's unbelievable that something with this much common sense could not pass the Legislature."
Well put.
My opinion
Thank you, Charlotte Sun for keeping this story alive. It's extremely important not just for Charlotte County but for the whole state of Florida.
Thank you, Senator Detert, and Reps Roberson and Kreegel. God bless you for following your consciences by doing the right thing for the citizens of the state of Florida.
As most of you know the foundation has been traveling across the nation to tell Denise's story. So, many things went wrong and it's not just about training. From what I understand (and I've seen their training manuals for call takers and dispatchers) the CCSO does have an excellent training program. The problem the night Denise died goes deeper than training. They were not using the training they recieved and they were not using the technology they had at their fingertips. Why? Your guess is as good as mine. Hopefully Denise's death has not been in vain and they are using their CADs properly now, the way they were trained to use them. Also, hopefully BOLOs are being monitored 24/7. But it shouldn't have taken Denise's death to accomplish this. Again, the best training and technology in the world are absolutely worthless, if they are not being used.
I am of the opinion that even the new legislation that was presented this year fell short of what we're fighting for. The proposed law that failed gave the sheriff's and police departments until 2012 to step up. Who wants to wait until 2012? Several people died in just the past year in Florida due to 9-1-1 mishaps, not just Denise! Also, it would have allowed them to be pretty much "grandfathered" in. Heh!
Well, if anything, we've been told and we believe now that this is a national issue. So, dear Florida, you can be a leader in this or you can continue to be embarrassed and neglectful of your citizens. People will continue to die so long as call takers and dispatchers are not held to a standard. People will continue to die in canals, trunks and cars as long as we're not using GPS in cell phones.
Just so there's no doubt about it, there is no way we're going to drop this! We'll fight even harder this year and we'll be even stronger. Also, the law we propose will be much stronger. We had a lesson in politics this past year and we're not going to shut up. We're that motivated.
Aside to Governor Crist: I hear you're going to run for senator. I do hope you look into this issue for the benefit of the citizens of Florida. You've avoided it so far like an expert dancer. But you will not be able to avoid it forever. And it IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO! Step out of the meetings with the lobbyists in Tallahassee and meet with what Bill O'Reilly calls "the folks". Meet with Nathan and hear his story. His mission is a noble one.
Again, a big thank you to the Sun.
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
In the Charlotte Sun
Here we are receiving support across the nation but in Florida......
Thank you Senator Detert, Rep Kreegel, Rep Roberson and David Garofalo. Please, keep fighting the good fight and that is to save lives by minimizing human error and creating standards for 9-1-1 dispatchers and call takers.
The bill had flaws but it was a start. It's truly appalling, pathetic and sad that certain public officials put politics before public safety.
No hurry to pass 911 bill
By ED SCOTT
Staff Writer
NORTH PORT -- Local legislators are disappointed that their efforts to require enhanced 911 emergency dispatcher certification failed last week.
State Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, called it "unbelievable that something with this much common sense could not pass the Legislature."
A bill in the House of Representatives that required certification standards for 911 operators in Florida was sponsored by state Rep. Ken Roberson, R-Port Charlotte, and co-sponsored by Rep. Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda.
The local legislators had high hopes for the bill after it was given unanimous approval by the House Health Care Regulation Policy Committee in March. But it was indefinitely postponed and withdrawn from consideration on Saturday, one day after the session ended.
Meanwhile, a bill in the Senate, sponsored by Detert, that requires 911 operators to be certified by the state Department of Health, was in the Health and Human Services Appropriations committee in April.
"Since there was no movement in the House and we were running out of days, the Senate did not want to work on it any longer," Detert said.
Detert rejects the assertion that sheriffs across the state, who initially opposed the bill, did not ultimately support it.
"We had worked that all out and the sheriffs did support it in the end," Detert said. "There was one major lobbyist (Richard Pinsky) who testified against it several times. He represents the 911 operators and they wanted totally different language that we did not agree to."
Referring to Pinsky, who lobbies for the Florida 911 Emergency Dispatchers organization, Kreegel said, "There are some lobbyists for the 911 operators who interfered with the process greatly."
The House bill passed through the House Health Care Regulation Policy Committee after an impassioned speech by North Port City Commissioner David Garofalo, who is on the board of the Denise Amber Lee Foundation.
"He didn't make a speech; he hit a home run," Kreegel said.
Last year the Legislature made law a Kreegel-sponsored bill that recommended higher certification standards for 911 operators statewide but did not mandate them. That law followed the murder of 21-year-old Denise Amber Lee, who was kidnapped from her North Port home in January 2008.
The Lee family believes the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office botched a 911 call to dispatch units to the intersection where Denise was last seen by a motorist.
Currently, each emergency dispatch call center mandates its own criteria. Detert says her bill would have provided uniformity "from county to county and to make it mandatory instead of voluntary. Part of the dispute was who was going to teach the course and we were going to allow the sheriffs to do it themselves."
Detert said Denise Lee's husband, Nathan Lee, who is promoting 911 certification nationwide, "wants consistency and I support that and our bill provided consistency," meaning counties would have been required to provide similar training.
"If there is any cost involved, that does not bother me because that's why the sheriffs get funding, to protect the public and for safety issues. That's what our tax dollars pay for."
Nathan Lee echoed his displeasure at the bill's failure.
"I'm disappointed, but in the same respect, I'm excited about drafting our own legislation," he said Tuesday.
Kreegel was also disappointed that senators "never got it done. They had bigger fish to fry with the budget. Very little was passed this year.
"In the House it was ready to go to the floor, (but) if you have something with no traction in the Senate, then it won't be heard on the floor of the House," Kreegel said.
Detert says she will reintroduce the bill next year.
"It will be back," she said. "It was a good learning experience for Ken Roberson that the simplest things are harder than they look and you have to strap on your armor and battle lobbyists. I think it was a surprise to him that the sheriffs would not support this bill (initially).
"Next year he'll have better luck because we have smoothed the road."
"It was a good learning experience but he actually did an excellent job shepherding it through committee," Kreegel said of Roberson.
Staff writer Jason Witz contributed to this report.
E-mail: escott@sun-herald.com
Thank you Senator Detert, Rep Kreegel, Rep Roberson and David Garofalo. Please, keep fighting the good fight and that is to save lives by minimizing human error and creating standards for 9-1-1 dispatchers and call takers.
The bill had flaws but it was a start. It's truly appalling, pathetic and sad that certain public officials put politics before public safety.
No hurry to pass 911 bill
By ED SCOTT
Staff Writer
NORTH PORT -- Local legislators are disappointed that their efforts to require enhanced 911 emergency dispatcher certification failed last week.
State Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Venice, called it "unbelievable that something with this much common sense could not pass the Legislature."
A bill in the House of Representatives that required certification standards for 911 operators in Florida was sponsored by state Rep. Ken Roberson, R-Port Charlotte, and co-sponsored by Rep. Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda.
The local legislators had high hopes for the bill after it was given unanimous approval by the House Health Care Regulation Policy Committee in March. But it was indefinitely postponed and withdrawn from consideration on Saturday, one day after the session ended.
Meanwhile, a bill in the Senate, sponsored by Detert, that requires 911 operators to be certified by the state Department of Health, was in the Health and Human Services Appropriations committee in April.
"Since there was no movement in the House and we were running out of days, the Senate did not want to work on it any longer," Detert said.
Detert rejects the assertion that sheriffs across the state, who initially opposed the bill, did not ultimately support it.
"We had worked that all out and the sheriffs did support it in the end," Detert said. "There was one major lobbyist (Richard Pinsky) who testified against it several times. He represents the 911 operators and they wanted totally different language that we did not agree to."
Referring to Pinsky, who lobbies for the Florida 911 Emergency Dispatchers organization, Kreegel said, "There are some lobbyists for the 911 operators who interfered with the process greatly."
The House bill passed through the House Health Care Regulation Policy Committee after an impassioned speech by North Port City Commissioner David Garofalo, who is on the board of the Denise Amber Lee Foundation.
"He didn't make a speech; he hit a home run," Kreegel said.
Last year the Legislature made law a Kreegel-sponsored bill that recommended higher certification standards for 911 operators statewide but did not mandate them. That law followed the murder of 21-year-old Denise Amber Lee, who was kidnapped from her North Port home in January 2008.
The Lee family believes the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office botched a 911 call to dispatch units to the intersection where Denise was last seen by a motorist.
Currently, each emergency dispatch call center mandates its own criteria. Detert says her bill would have provided uniformity "from county to county and to make it mandatory instead of voluntary. Part of the dispute was who was going to teach the course and we were going to allow the sheriffs to do it themselves."
Detert said Denise Lee's husband, Nathan Lee, who is promoting 911 certification nationwide, "wants consistency and I support that and our bill provided consistency," meaning counties would have been required to provide similar training.
"If there is any cost involved, that does not bother me because that's why the sheriffs get funding, to protect the public and for safety issues. That's what our tax dollars pay for."
Nathan Lee echoed his displeasure at the bill's failure.
"I'm disappointed, but in the same respect, I'm excited about drafting our own legislation," he said Tuesday.
Kreegel was also disappointed that senators "never got it done. They had bigger fish to fry with the budget. Very little was passed this year.
"In the House it was ready to go to the floor, (but) if you have something with no traction in the Senate, then it won't be heard on the floor of the House," Kreegel said.
Detert says she will reintroduce the bill next year.
"It will be back," she said. "It was a good learning experience for Ken Roberson that the simplest things are harder than they look and you have to strap on your armor and battle lobbyists. I think it was a surprise to him that the sheriffs would not support this bill (initially).
"Next year he'll have better luck because we have smoothed the road."
"It was a good learning experience but he actually did an excellent job shepherding it through committee," Kreegel said of Roberson.
Staff writer Jason Witz contributed to this report.
E-mail: escott@sun-herald.com
Sunday, March 29, 2009
"When is Governor Charlie Crist going to step up"
Be prepared for a rant.
Seriously, how can we wait? Right now there are two bills being proposed up in Tallahassee both requiring some sort of mandatory 9-1-1 dispatcher/call taker training. Both bills are flawed.
Both bills expect us to wait until 2012 before persons need to be certified. The bill headed to the house states that police and sheriff departments can submit to the Department of Health their training standards before 2012 and have them approved. This essentially means that the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office can submit for approval their training program and may not have to change their "business as usual".
Either way 2012 is way too far away.
Someone asked me just this morning (and it's what got me fired up even more than usual, I'm always fired up over this but still....) "Can we find out how many people die due to 9-1-1 mistakes?"
NO! There's no possible way to find this out without someone (preferably a regular citizen) overseeing the 9-1-1 community in Florida. How many people have died in Florida due to 9-1-1 mistakes? We have no idea.
We would never have known about Denise's mishandled 9-1-1 call if it hadn't been for Jane Kowalski. See bottom paragraph of this post http://toosad4words.blogspot.com/2009/01/denise-amber-leetop-ten-reasons-i.html
Jane, God bless her, hounded the NPPD until they figured out who she was. Once they figured it all out they had to REQUEST the information on her call from the CCSO. Why? Because they knew they not only mishandled the call and didn't dispatch a car but they weren't monitoring their Teletype and several BOLO's issued by the NPPD were ignored describing the suspect and his car. They were covering it up.
Their side of the story is one person thought the other person called the NPPD while the other person said the other one did. Yeah. Just like the one dispatcher said she thought the other dispatcher dispatched a car and the other dispatcher thought.....................
WE WOULD NEVER HAVE KNOWN.
Who's overseeing the 9-1-1 community in Florida?
Yep. 9-1-1 industry people.
As Nathan said in his speech YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME?????
PEOPLE ARE DYING. And it's not just because of human errors. It's because we have a system where all the counties, townships etc... have different protocols and procedures.
We're not using technologies that are available to us. More and more people are using cell phones to report emergencies and we can't find them!!! The two most glaring examples are of course, Denise and Olidia Kerr Day. But how many others aren't being found? How about those football players lost in that boating accident? And how about the errors being made in these 9-1-1 centers? Olidia asked the dispatcher to have police waiting for her outside the station! Our call taker had a CAD and didn't use it! Or at least didn't use it properly because she wrote things down on a piece of paper! And then handed the piece of paper to a dispatcher! Huh? Florida's 9-1-1 "system", if you will, is flawed! Big time.
And more people are going to die. Some we'll hear about and others will be swept under the rug.
When is Governor Charlie Crist going to step up and say "This is wrong. We need to have someone OUTSIDE OF THE 9-1-1 INDUSTRY looking into these tragedies. And then 9-1-1 industry experts from many companies (not just one) looking into the problems, then suggesting and providing solutions! Our citizens are dying and we can do better!"
Having 9-1-1 industry peeps watchdogging their own industry is like having the fox watch over the henhouse.
I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to North Port City Commissioner David Garofalo, Senator Nancy Detert, Representatives Paige Kreegel and Ken Roberson for their hard work, dedication, diligence and compassion for our cause. You are our heroes and I'm in tears just thinking about all you are doing for us. You all have been simply wonderful.
But it is my opinion that we can do better. WE HAVE TO DO BETTER.
And to those lobbyists and companies with agendas to make more money and garner more control, I say........ shame on you. People are dying.
Seriously, how can we wait? Right now there are two bills being proposed up in Tallahassee both requiring some sort of mandatory 9-1-1 dispatcher/call taker training. Both bills are flawed.
Both bills expect us to wait until 2012 before persons need to be certified. The bill headed to the house states that police and sheriff departments can submit to the Department of Health their training standards before 2012 and have them approved. This essentially means that the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office can submit for approval their training program and may not have to change their "business as usual".
Either way 2012 is way too far away.
Someone asked me just this morning (and it's what got me fired up even more than usual, I'm always fired up over this but still....) "Can we find out how many people die due to 9-1-1 mistakes?"
NO! There's no possible way to find this out without someone (preferably a regular citizen) overseeing the 9-1-1 community in Florida. How many people have died in Florida due to 9-1-1 mistakes? We have no idea.
We would never have known about Denise's mishandled 9-1-1 call if it hadn't been for Jane Kowalski. See bottom paragraph of this post http://toosad4words.blogspot.com/2009/01/denise-amber-leetop-ten-reasons-i.html
Jane, God bless her, hounded the NPPD until they figured out who she was. Once they figured it all out they had to REQUEST the information on her call from the CCSO. Why? Because they knew they not only mishandled the call and didn't dispatch a car but they weren't monitoring their Teletype and several BOLO's issued by the NPPD were ignored describing the suspect and his car. They were covering it up.
Their side of the story is one person thought the other person called the NPPD while the other person said the other one did. Yeah. Just like the one dispatcher said she thought the other dispatcher dispatched a car and the other dispatcher thought.....................
WE WOULD NEVER HAVE KNOWN.
Who's overseeing the 9-1-1 community in Florida?
Yep. 9-1-1 industry people.
As Nathan said in his speech YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME?????
PEOPLE ARE DYING. And it's not just because of human errors. It's because we have a system where all the counties, townships etc... have different protocols and procedures.
We're not using technologies that are available to us. More and more people are using cell phones to report emergencies and we can't find them!!! The two most glaring examples are of course, Denise and Olidia Kerr Day. But how many others aren't being found? How about those football players lost in that boating accident? And how about the errors being made in these 9-1-1 centers? Olidia asked the dispatcher to have police waiting for her outside the station! Our call taker had a CAD and didn't use it! Or at least didn't use it properly because she wrote things down on a piece of paper! And then handed the piece of paper to a dispatcher! Huh? Florida's 9-1-1 "system", if you will, is flawed! Big time.
And more people are going to die. Some we'll hear about and others will be swept under the rug.
When is Governor Charlie Crist going to step up and say "This is wrong. We need to have someone OUTSIDE OF THE 9-1-1 INDUSTRY looking into these tragedies. And then 9-1-1 industry experts from many companies (not just one) looking into the problems, then suggesting and providing solutions! Our citizens are dying and we can do better!"
Having 9-1-1 industry peeps watchdogging their own industry is like having the fox watch over the henhouse.
I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to North Port City Commissioner David Garofalo, Senator Nancy Detert, Representatives Paige Kreegel and Ken Roberson for their hard work, dedication, diligence and compassion for our cause. You are our heroes and I'm in tears just thinking about all you are doing for us. You all have been simply wonderful.
But it is my opinion that we can do better. WE HAVE TO DO BETTER.
And to those lobbyists and companies with agendas to make more money and garner more control, I say........ shame on you. People are dying.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Today's Top Story in the Sun
Published on: Thursday, March 26, 2009
Area legislators sponsor 911 training bill
Kreegel, Roberson have authored a bill requiring certification of dispatchers.
House 0769: Relating to 911 Emergency Dispatcher Certification
Senate 2040: Relating to 911 Emergency Dispatcher Certification
Florida House of Representatives
Florida Senate
With the help of all five North Port city commissioners, state representatives Ken Roberson and Paige Kreegel pushed a bill through committee Wednesday that would require certification standards for 911 operators in Florida.
House Bill 769, titled "911 Emergency Dispatcher Certification," is a measure pushed by the Charlotte County Republicans in reaction to the murder of 21-year-old Denise Amber Lee, who was kidnapped from her North Port home last year. The Lee family believes the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office botched a 911 call to dispatch units to the intersection where Denise was last seen by a motorist.
"I think it's going to go a long way to improve the public's confidence in the 911 system and hopefully save lives here in Florida," Roberson, of Port Charlotte, said from Tallahassee Wednesday. It was one of three bills he had which successfully passed through committee.
If it completes the committee process and becomes law through the Legislature, the bill would require any person serving as a 911 emergency dispatcher to be certified by the Florida Department of Health by Oct. 1, 2012, through a set of statewide standards. Currently, each emergency dispatch call center mandates its own criteria.
A similar bill also is being pushed by Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Sarasota.
The bill was given unanimous approval by the Health Care Regulation Committee after an impassioned speech by North Port City Commissioner David Garofalo, who also is on the board of the Denise Amber Lee Foundation. Roberson said Garofalo told the harrowing tale of Lee's demise to a captivated audience of around 200.
"You could hear a pin drop when he was telling the story," Roberson said.
No one was more surprised than Garofalo by his speech -- the commissioner did not expect to address the committee in his visit Wednesday. But seeing the bill face opposition from Tallahassee lobbyists, Garofalo said he felt compelled to give his all for Denise.
"I'm not going to have her name die in this committee right here," the commissioner, still fired up from the meeting, recalled himself thinking Wednesday.
Garofalo said he had tears welling up in his eyes as he spoke, earning the 5-0 vote. Given that, he thinks he got through to the members of the House that this bill is about more than the Lee family's tragedy.
"It's not just a grieving family," Garofalo said. "This is what needs to happen."
See this story at www.sunnewspapers.net to read both the House and Senate bills.
E-mail: nhughes@sun-herald.com
By NEIL HUGHES
Staff Writer
Area legislators sponsor 911 training bill
Kreegel, Roberson have authored a bill requiring certification of dispatchers.
House 0769: Relating to 911 Emergency Dispatcher Certification
Senate 2040: Relating to 911 Emergency Dispatcher Certification
Florida House of Representatives
Florida Senate
With the help of all five North Port city commissioners, state representatives Ken Roberson and Paige Kreegel pushed a bill through committee Wednesday that would require certification standards for 911 operators in Florida.
House Bill 769, titled "911 Emergency Dispatcher Certification," is a measure pushed by the Charlotte County Republicans in reaction to the murder of 21-year-old Denise Amber Lee, who was kidnapped from her North Port home last year. The Lee family believes the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office botched a 911 call to dispatch units to the intersection where Denise was last seen by a motorist.
"I think it's going to go a long way to improve the public's confidence in the 911 system and hopefully save lives here in Florida," Roberson, of Port Charlotte, said from Tallahassee Wednesday. It was one of three bills he had which successfully passed through committee.
If it completes the committee process and becomes law through the Legislature, the bill would require any person serving as a 911 emergency dispatcher to be certified by the Florida Department of Health by Oct. 1, 2012, through a set of statewide standards. Currently, each emergency dispatch call center mandates its own criteria.
A similar bill also is being pushed by Sen. Nancy Detert, R-Sarasota.
The bill was given unanimous approval by the Health Care Regulation Committee after an impassioned speech by North Port City Commissioner David Garofalo, who also is on the board of the Denise Amber Lee Foundation. Roberson said Garofalo told the harrowing tale of Lee's demise to a captivated audience of around 200.
"You could hear a pin drop when he was telling the story," Roberson said.
No one was more surprised than Garofalo by his speech -- the commissioner did not expect to address the committee in his visit Wednesday. But seeing the bill face opposition from Tallahassee lobbyists, Garofalo said he felt compelled to give his all for Denise.
"I'm not going to have her name die in this committee right here," the commissioner, still fired up from the meeting, recalled himself thinking Wednesday.
Garofalo said he had tears welling up in his eyes as he spoke, earning the 5-0 vote. Given that, he thinks he got through to the members of the House that this bill is about more than the Lee family's tragedy.
"It's not just a grieving family," Garofalo said. "This is what needs to happen."
See this story at www.sunnewspapers.net to read both the House and Senate bills.
E-mail: nhughes@sun-herald.com
By NEIL HUGHES
Staff Writer
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