FORT SMITH -- After an allegation of offensive and inappropriate language and an internal investigation, a 911 dispatcher with the Fort Smith Police Department has been terminated effective Friday.
Fort Smith Police Chief Danny Baker became aware of the allegation on April 11 when a resident's social media post detailing the incident was forwarded to him by one of his senior command staff officers, according to a department news release Friday. The resident who made the post had been contacted and chose not to file a formal complaint against the dispatcher.
However, because the reported language was "so troubling and unbecoming of a public servant," the release states, Baker ordered an immediate investigation. A certified training operator, whom the release did not name, was identified for using rude, offensive and unprofessional language on April 9 while speaking to a resident and in the background of another call. The operator was fired after discussion with the city administrator and human resources department.
Regarding the identity of the fired employee, a police spokesman referred reporters to the city's Human Resources department. The news release was issued after 5 p.m., and City Hall was closed.
"I take no pleasure in making this determination," Baker said. "But the public expects more from us than what was heard on that call, as they should. I thank the [certified training operator] for her many years of service, but I have asked the people of Fort Smith to be kind to one another, especially during these unprecedented and uncertain times. It is imperative for me to hold my employees to that same standard."
"We are doing good things here every day," Baker added. "The overwhelming majority of the 217 sworn and non-sworn personnel of the Fort Smith Police Department come to work with an attitude and a spirit of service and community every day, and I appreciate them very much."
In the original social media post, which police provided, the caller described calling 911 to have a officer respond after being rear-ended the previous day. After a woman answered, the caller could barely hear what she said, with the woman "kinda" laughing.
The caller reported that while explaining what happened, the caller heard a person beside the dispatcher yell, "That stupid [expletive]" so loudly that the caller stopped talking. The dispatcher then reportedly said she was sorry about that, while laughing.
"I don't find this OK at all," the caller wrote in the complaint. "These are dispatchers. These are people who are supposed to be there for us! What if I was in an abusive situation/injured and I ... needed someone fast and that happened?"
The caller also referenced the Aug. 24 drowning of Debra Stevens.
Stevens, a newspaper carrier, drowned in her car near 5801 Kinkead Ave. in Fort Smith while on the phone with a dispatcher after torrential rainfall resulted in flash flooding throughout the city, a previous Arkansas Democrat-Gazette article reported. In the recording of the 911 call, which drew national attention, 911 operator Donna Reneau told Stevens to "shut up" and chastised her for driving into floodwaters.
Reneau had turned in her notice two weeks before Stephens' death, and Aug. 24 was her last day as a 911 operator. Reneau faced no criminal charges in the death, and the Police Department's internal review of the actions of Reneau and emergency responders during Stevens' drowning, which was released Dec. 20, concluded that Reneau performed her duties as required.
"I told the police that came what happened and they were shocked/mad," the caller said of the most recent phone call. "A sergeant called me, and I told him what happened, and he said she is going to get a verbal warning. I feel that this is a bit more serious than that since this is a reoccurring issue, but that could just be me."
The news release states while the Fort Smith Police Department believes its officers and dispatchers are good people with high-pressure jobs that require sacrifice and love of community, this type of behavior cannot be tolerated from a public servant. Those with any concerns or complaints involving any interactions with a Police Department employee are asked to contact the department's office of professional standards at (479) 709-5161.
"It is our vision to improve the lives of everyone we encounter, and you can help us accomplish this by swiftly bringing such issues to our attention," the release states. "Thank you, Fort Smith. It is a privilege to serve this community, and we will strive every day to earn it."
State Desk on 04/18/2020