NEW ORLEANS — New Orleans City Council members are begging the New Orleans 911 center to make changes to their system, hoping it'll save lives.
Friday, the council held a budget hearing for Orleans Parish Communication District, but instead mostly focused on gaps in the system.
"I first don’t believe the protocols in place for DV are correct at all but then at the same time you all didn’t even follow your own protocols there was a threat of violence it should’ve never been labeled as a dispute," Council Vice President Helena Moreno said.
Friday, Moreno expressed frustration and said the system failed the three kids who died on America Street in October. Their father was arrested and accused of setting their home on fire, while the three kids were still inside. But, their mother called 911. Friday it was revealed, New Orleans 911 system flagged it as a domestic dispute when it should have flagged it as a domestic violence call.
"That determinant code mapped to domestic dispute. It doesn’t now and it won’t in the future but that’s all I could tell you, as soon as we knew it I looked," Interim Director of OPCD, Karl Fasold said.
Moreno says that difference can cost lives.
"That seems like two people just yelling at each other and so you can see why that wasn’t prioritized," Moreno said.
The current system was put in place by OPCD former Director, Tyrell Morris. Now many are blaming Morris for the cracks, including some who were on his board.
"That’s not my interpretation of the best practices," Kyle Arnold, an OPCD board member said.
Morris minimized domestic calls from over 10 different types, to two. Now, police have less information when responding to a domestic incident. It was a move many say didn't involve input from NOPD.
"He was just so hellbent on being right and not willing to take a look at actual data and policies that shows your policies are wrong and could endanger people’s lives," Moreno said about Morris.
Now Fasold says they're returning to the old system. Moreno said that accountability and willingness to change gave her some relief the issues can and will be fixed.
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