NJ Logan was at home resting after a recent hip replacement surgery when she heard some noise coming from downstairs. Knowing that no one else was home and her husband was out, she grabbed her gun and made her way down the stairs while alerting the intruders that she was armed and dangerous to their health.
“When I called 911 she kept saying put the gun down. Put the gun down and I said I’ll put the gun down when I see the police,” NJ said.
Luckily, she didn’t take the advice of the operator (who has obviously never had her home broken into while she was there). The intruders fled without Logan firing any shots and the police are still looking for them.
via 911 Operator Tells FL Woman To Put Gun Down While Robbers Were In Her Home | Concealed Nation.
Same as with police and prosecutors making a decision on a deadly enforce encounter: They are/were not there, you are.
IMHO that operator should be fired.
I picture it like a scene from a tv drama. You see the 911 supervisor listen to that 911 call. His eyes flick up to see said operator just finishing up a call. The supervisor leaps from his desk and rushes out of his office in the direction of the operator. Cut to her hanging up on a call and taking a drink of water before reaching out to take another call. Just before her finger touches the button the supervisor slams into her and they both tumble to the floor. She looks up at him, “What do you think you’re doing?” She demands. He looks at her, breathless, and says, “Saving lives”.
LoL, I would watch that.
I remember the 911 operator who took the call from the young mom with the deployed military husband (IIRC) whose home got invaded. She went into the bedroom, closed the door, armed herself.
(paraphrased from 911 call)
CALLER: If they try to break down the door, I’m going to shoot them.
OPERATOR: You do what you have to do to protect your baby.
I hope that operator got promoted. 🙂
Yep, some 911 operators get it, some don’t…
Why in the world would anyone take instructions from someone who isn’t there, knows virtually nothing about the situation, cannot possibly appreciate the immediacy of the danger, cannot help in any tangible and immediate way, and has no stake in the outcome?
And what was supposed to happen to the gun if she put it down? The violent predator gets to use it? How incredibly stupid. Dial 911 and die indeed.
Sadly, they take those instructions because many people are conditioned to obey someone who is seemingly in a position of authority, and in doing so abdicate their ability to think.
Here in Denver we had a case a couple years ago where a 911 operator told the victim of a road rage incident to return to the scene to wait for police….
he was murdered while waiting.
http://abcnews.go.com/US/911-operators-instructions-return-crime-scene-turn-deadly/story?id=16064447
Wow! I had not heard about this one….
“911- its the joke of yo town’
Flavor Flav 1990
and if that idiot got it, whats wrong with you?
I wonder if that horrible advice is policy or if that particular operator is just independently stupid.
The lady in this case, and all of the commenters are 100% correct. However, none of that has a damn thing to do with the Zimmerman/911 exchange.
I am minded of the aviation advice:
“Don’t drop the airplane because you are flying the mike, talking to someone who can do NOTHING about your situation until you’re back on the ground anyway.”