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Residents and 911 experts press OUC on dispatch errors, FOIA compliance and investigations
Summary
Public witnesses and a local 911 analyst told the Committee that repeated dispatch mistakes and slow investigations have had real-world harms; OUC said it has implemented new QA tools and requests resources to investigate reported errors.
Multiple witnesses at the committee hearing described repeated and, in a few cases, dangerous errors by OUC dispatch operations and urged the Council to allocate funds to investigate failures and improve FOIA compliance. Dave Statter, representing Statter 9-1-1 Communications, described a cardiac arrest dispatch in which radio communications went unanswered and told the committee: "7 times in 4 minutes, dispatchers didn't answer the radio during a cardiac arrest call."
Citizen advocates asked for independent review capacity and better FOIA responsiveness; one witness said OUC often denies FOIA requests and that committee staff had received emails documenting dispatch errors that were not reflected in OUC systems. Director Heather McGaffin acknowledged earlier OIG findings, said OUC has reduced some absenteeism by targeted HR interventions, and highlighted investments in AI-driven quality assurance that now evaluates far more calls than manual reviews did previously.
In response to questions, McGaffin said OUC has added an HR coordinator to manage long-term leave cases, implemented attendance incentives, and is piloting AI tools to provide 100% QA coverage for 9-1-1 calls. She and committee members agreed the agency should document investigations of serious dispatch mistakes and provide clearer FOIA procedures for residents reporting errors.
