Houston 911 operator accused of hanging up on 1000s of calls

Jiggyfly

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Houston 911 operator accused of hanging up on 1000s of calls
Associated Press



HOUSTON — A Houston 911 operator accused of hanging up on thousands of emergency calls is charged with two counts of interference with an emergency telephone call.
Harris County court records show 43-year-old Crenshanda Williams of Houston was charged Oct. 5 and freed on $2,000 bond. She faces a court appearance next week.

KPRC-TV reported Williams was involved in thousands of "short calls," lasting 20 seconds or less, between October 2015 and March. Joe Laud, the Houston Emergency Center administration manager, said Thursday she was placed on indefinite suspension and fired Aug. 4.

In one incident, Williams hung up on a caller reporting a robbery in progress at a convenience store. The man called back and spoke to a different operator, but by the time police arrived, the store manager was fatally shot.


A security guard called 911 on March 13 to report two motorists driving recklessly at high speed on a Houston freeway. Police said Williams was the 911 operator and cut short the call before the caller could provide his name.

According to a recording of the call, Williams hung up then said: "Ain't nobody got time for this. For real."

AP could not reach Williams for comment; her phone number is not listed and online court records don't list an attorney to speak on her behalf.

Police said when Williams was questioned in June 2016, she told them she often hangs up on calls because she didn't want to talk with anyone at that time.

One caller, Buster Pendley, said Williams hung up on him March 1 when his wife collapsed and lost consciousness. Pendley said he tried to perform CPR on his wife with one hand while calling 911 with the other.

"The 911 operator answered the phone, and she said, 'This is Crenshanda, may I help you?'" Pendley recalled. He told her his wife had passed out and needed an ambulance, the operator said OK then hung up.

He got help after a second 911 call and his wife, Sharon Stephens, survived, but the experience still makes her angry.

"I would have gotten from my hospital bed and gone to 911 and find out who did that to me," she said.

If convicted, Williams could be sentenced to up to a year in jail and $4,000 fine for each count.
 

Cotton

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I heard this on the radio yesterday. Wow. :lol
 

E_D_Guapo

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According to a recording of the call, Williams hung up then said: "Ain't nobody got time for this. For real."


Police said when Williams was questioned in June 2016, she told them she often hangs up on calls because she didn't want to talk with anyone at that time.
This sounds like a bad SNL skit where she would be sitting there doing her nails and talking on her cell phone ("Mmmmm, hmmm....I know that's right", "Girl, where you get them extensions at?", etc.), begrudgingly putting Shaniqua on hold to answer the occasional emergency call but can't be bothered with the crisis on the other end of the line. What a piece of shit. I realize I am badly stereotyping this woman, but she did it first.
 

Cotton

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This sounds like a bad SNL skit where she would be sitting there doing her nails and talking on her cell phone ("Mmmmm, hmmm....I know that's right", "Girl, where you get them extensions at?", etc.), begrudgingly putting Shaniqua on hold to answer the occasional emergency call but can't be bothered with the crisis on the other end of the line. What a piece of shit. I realize I am badly stereotyping this woman, but she did it first.
Yeah, she very well could have gotten someone killed that might have been saved had she gotten the cops there sooner.
 

Jiggyfly

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This sounds like a bad SNL skit where she would be sitting there doing her nails and talking on her cell phone ("Mmmmm, hmmm....I know that's right", "Girl, where you get them extensions at?", etc.), begrudgingly putting Shaniqua on hold to answer the occasional emergency call but can't be bothered with the crisis on the other end of the line. What a piece of shit. I realize I am badly stereotyping this woman, but she did it first.
Very bad stereotype but very apt as well.

After all stereotypes are based on some facts.
 

townsend

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This sounds like a bad SNL skit where she would be sitting there doing her nails and talking on her cell phone ("Mmmmm, hmmm....I know that's right", "Girl, where you get them extensions at?", etc.), begrudgingly putting Shaniqua on hold to answer the occasional emergency call but can't be bothered with the crisis on the other end of the line. What a piece of shit. I realize I am badly stereotyping this woman, but she did it first.
Somehow, it's less offensive if you picture it as a Key and Peele sketch.
 

Kbrown

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Nobody wants to represent a stereotype, and I feel like someone named Crenshanda would know to work extra hard in this regard. For shame, Crenshanda.
 
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