Falk: Better 911 Response Could Not Have Stopped Slaying

MADISON, Wis. -- Dane County's top official said that a better response to a 911 call from a college student's cell phone before she was slain still couldn't have saved her life.

VIDEO: Watch The Report | TALKBACK: What Do You Think? | READ: Oversight Board Chair Says He Heard Of 911 Call Day After Slaying | READ: Read Falk Memo To 911 Center (PDF Format) | READ: Read Kathleen Falk Statement Regarding 911 Incident (PDF Format)

County Executive Kathleen Falk apologized Tuesday at a news conference for errors employees made responding to the April 2 call from Brittany Zimmermann's cell phone.

Falk said one of the errors wasn't discovered until as late as two weeks after the slaying.

But she said she doesn't believe the University of Wisconsin-Madison student's slaying could have been prevented.

When the call came in, a county dispatcher inquired three times about whether an emergency existed but heard nothing before the call ended. She then failed to call the number back as required under department policy, Falk said.

"(The dispatcher) didn't do everything right. There are two errors of procedure, and to elaborate again on what I said earlier, that in my 11 years of serving as county executive, this situation is extremely rare," Falk said.

Falk said another call from a landline phone in Middleton came in as the call from Zimmermann's phone ended. Falk said the dispatcher called the Middleton number back, thinking it was Zimmermann's, and two young men told the dispatcher they called in error.

The county later crosschecked the three sets of call records it keeps and discovered the mistake on April 15 -- after county officials had already mistakenly told detectives that the men had answered Zimmermann's cell phone.

Falk said the call does contain sounds that have significance but they weren't heard by the dispatcher. Police officers were never sent to investigate on the day of the call.

The internal investigation showed where police would have been sent had they been dispatched. Falk said the most precise location provided to dispatch would have been to 511 West Doty Street, a 24-unit apartment building next to Zimmermann's residence.

Pinpointing the location typically takes between 5 and 30 minutes and involves the 911 center coordinating with the caller's cell phone company, WISC-TV reported.

Falk said the investigation into what happened with the 911 call has been completed but that Madison police have directed the 40-page report not be released to the media.

In addition to the apology, Falk outlined a set of directives to 911 Center Director Joe Norwick that involve steps that she feels need to be taken so as to prevent similar incidents from happening again.

First, Falk called for an immediate review of all current training and personnel qualifications. Next, she asked for a review of all three sets of call records the 911 center keeps to document outgoing and incoming calls.

Falk said she also wants Norwick to ask the Public Safety Communications Center Board whether or not a system is needed to automatically alert police of any cell phone call where it can't be confirmed that there is no emergency.

The county executive also called for a third-party review of the situation and the overall performance of the 911 Center.

Falk said that an investigation into whether disciplinary action is warranted continues, although the dispatcher has been transferred to another department.

As far as the 911 center director's handling of the incident, Falk said she will not fire Norwick.

The chairman of the Public Safety Communications Oversight Board that manages policy and budget matters for the Dane County 911 Center said he first heard about the Zimmermann call April 3, the day after she was killed.

Ron Boylan, also a Dane County Sheriff's Department chief deputy, said he was told by 911 Operations Manager Rich McVicar that there "may have been a call received from the 500 block of Doty Street regarding the Zimmermann homicide."

Boylan said that's according to his notes from the day. He also said he was told that as far as 911 officials knew, there was no problem with how the call was received or handled by the 911 center.

The 911 center is offering advice to those calling in with an emergency from a cell phone.

First, callers should assume that dispatchers do not know the caller's location. Callers should be prepared to give their cell phone number or some other way of re-contacting.

Officials also advised people not to make 911 a speed dial number to help cut down on accidental calls to the center.