The Cleveland 911 dispatcher who took kidnap victim Amanda Berry’s call on Monday evening may lose his/her job for the callous way the call was handled.
The unidentified dispatcher was cold and lacked empathy when Berry dialed 911 to report she had been kidnapped and held in a basement for 10 years by former Cleveland school bus driver Ariel Castro, 52.
Audio of the 911 call angered many Cleveland residents who demanded to know why the unsympathetic “call taker” didn’t keep Berry on the phone until police arrived.
Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson thanked the residents for their concern in a statement posted on the Cleveland police website.
“While the call-taker complied with policies and procedures which enabled a very fast response by police, we have noted some concerns which will be the focus of our review, including the call-taker’s failure to remain on the line with Ms. Berry until police arrived on scene. Please be assured that this matter will be investigated, and if necessary, appropriate corrective action taken.”
Berry, 27, was rescued from a Seymour Avenue house along with her 6-year-old daughter, Jocelyn, who was born in captivity.
Two other women, Gina DeJesus, 24, and Michelle Knight, 32, were also rescued from the home by a neighbor, Charles Ramsey, who heard Berry’s cries for help. All 3 women have been reunited with their families.
According to police sources, Castro would often take Joceleyn out of the dungeon to visit his mother on the weekends. The woman who Jocelyn referred to as “grandma,” home-schooled the little girl. Castro reportedly told his mother Jocelyn was his girlfriend’s daughter. But police are trying to determine how much Castro’s mother knew about the kidnapping.
Sources say Jocelyn called Castro “daddy.” The child’s paternity has not yet been established.
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