The Place for Jersey City News
Log In / Register
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
Jersey City Times
  • News
  • Diversions
    • Performing Arts
    • Visual Arts
    • Other Fun Stuff
  • In Our Midst
  • Food And Drink
  • Education
  • Neighborhoods
    • Downtown
      • News
      • Guide
    • Heights
      • News
      • Guide
    • Journal Square
      • News
      • Guide
    • Bergen Lafayette
      • News
      • Guide
    • Greenville
      • News
      • Guide
    • Westside
      • News
      • Guide
  • Opinion
  • Columns
    • Eye Level
    • Mamarama
  • Event Calendar
  • Support our Mission
  • Search
  • Menu Menu
Aaron Morrill

Editorial: Is Anyone Home at 911?

February 15, 2021/in Downtown, header, Latest News, Neighborhoods, News, Opinion, Trending Now, Uncategorized /by Aaron Morrill

It was 3:30 in the afternoon on February 5 when Bill* heard screaming outside his Newark Avenue apartment. He looked out the window and saw an elderly man on the ground with blood running down his face.

There were three or four people hovering around him. Bill recognized them as regulars who could often be seen standing in front of the Archer bar with 40-ounce cans of beer in their hands.

He called 911. It rang. And it rang. And it rang. No one picked up.

He hung up and called “police dispatch” at 201-547-5477. Again, there was no answer.

Out of desperation, he finally called the Resident Response Center. A lady answered, and Bill explained that he hadn’t been able to reach the police. Confused about what to do, she transferred Bill to another woman who, in turn, transferred him back to dispatch. Again the phone rang and rang. No answer.

Screenshot from Andrea Ducas’s phone.

Feeling desperate, Bill called the Resident Response Center again. The lady on the other end of the line took down his name and number.

By this time, the bleeding elderly man was standing but unsteadily.

Bill’s phone rang. It was the Eastern District precinct. The lady on the other end was defensive when Bill asked why no one had answered his calls. He explained what he’d witnessed.

By now the elderly man had wandered off, and so had the perpetrators.

Bill is in old fashioned parlance a “concerned citizen.” And two days later he did what concerned citizens do: He contacted his councilman, James Solomon, along with Mayor Fulop, Public Safety Directory James Shea, and Prosecutor Jake Hudnut to tell them what happened.

A response came quickly. Director Shea wrote, “I already have the director pulling records. No response should be impossible. We will know what happened soon.” Mayor Fulop and Councilman Solomon also responded with appropriate concern.

Bill was told that, without the identity of the elderly man, they wouldn’t be able to make an arrest. Fittingly, Bill has sought to learn the man’s name. The police are reportedly also investigating.

When Bill first contacted me with his story, I was unsure whether it merited an article. Perhaps this was just a freak event. Then I remembered having the same problem myself nine months ago. For a solid 10 minutes, I couldn’t get through to 911. I wrote about it here. Maybe I should write about it, I thought. If the two of us had had the experience of not getting through, surely others have as well.

Now, several other people are reporting similar difficulty getting through to 911. Andrea Ducas went so far as to take a screen shot before giving up on her call last summer. “It literally rang for two minutes and nobody picked up. This is not an isolated occurrence.”

At some point in our lives, every one of us will need to call 911. For some callers, getting through quickly to 911 may be the difference between life and death. A system that can make someone wait for ten minutes or more to get through isn’t a system we can have confidence in. And it may end up killing someone.

Director Shea understands this as well as anyone. One assumes that he’ll make the investigation of this incident a priority.

When he is done, however, he should make his findings public. He should explain what went wrong that day and how the problem will be fixed. Every Jersey City resident should know that in an emergency there will be someone home at 911.

* We have used the name Bill to protect the witness’s identity.

Tags: crime, jersey city, Jersey City News, Jersey City Public Safety Director James Shea, Mayor Steven Fulop, Prosecutor Jake Hudnut, Ward E Councilman James Solomon
Share this entry
  • Share on Facebook
  • Share on Twitter
  • Share on WhatsApp
  • Share on Pinterest
  • Share on LinkedIn
You might also like
Publisher’s Letter
Jersey City Books: A Buying Guide for the Holidays
Jersey City Weeps for Detective Joseph Seals
Charges of Political Opportunism and Racism Dominate As City Council Approves Board of Education Referendum
Mayor Fulop Mayor Fulop and Councilman Yun Design $250 Million Plan to Fix School Budget Over Next Three Years
Bodycam Tapes Show Bravery of Jersey City Cops, Fulop says
City Gears Up For “Aggressive” Anti-Virus Campaign”
Jersey City Projected to Lose $70M in Coronavirus Crisis

News Briefs

Jesus Gonzalez, 30, died in a car crash last night when the car in which he was a passenger hit the attenuator-protected guard rail on Christopher Columbus Drive near the Merseles Street. The driver, also 30, was listed in critical condition at Jersey City Medical Center.

Assemblyman Nicholas A. Chiaravalloti (D-Hudson) is joining Governor Phil Murphy at Hudson County Community College in Jersey City for the signing of Bill A4410 / S2743, which will permanently codify the Community College Opportunity Grant Program into law. Students enrolled in any of the state’s 18 community colleges may be able to have their tuition waived. Students must be enrolled in at least six credits per semester and have an adjusted gross income of $0 -$65,000 in order to be considered. 

Jersey City Library Director Jeffrey Trzeciak is leaving to take a job in his hometown, Dayton, Ohio after serving for just 15 months.

The Jersey City Education Association has started a GoFundMe campaign to support the family of 11-year-old Desire Reid and eight-month old Kenyon Robinson who died in a house fire on Martin Luther King Drive on Wednesday night. Here is the link.

Vaccine-eligible individuals can make an appointment online by visiting hudsoncovidvax.org.

The 2021 tree planting applications are available. If you have an empty tree pit on your block or a street you can fill out the form and the city’s arborists will handle it.  bit.ly/adoptatreespri…

Keep abreast of Jersey City Covid-19 statistics here.

Governor Murphy has launched a “Covid Transparency Website” where New Jerseyans can track state expenditures related to Covid.  Go here.

For info on vaccinations, call Vaccination Call Center and our operators will assist you with scheduling one: 855-568-0545

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Upcoming Events

Sun 28

Walk-Bye Kids’ Photo Challenge

February 28
Jersey City NJ
United States
Sun 28

Black History Month Group Exhibition

February 28
Jersey City NJ
United States
Sun 28

Still I Rise Exhibition

February 28 @ 10:00 am - 6:00 pm
Sun 28

February Nature Programs at Liberty State Park: Winter Hike to Caven Point

February 28 @ 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm
Jersey City NJ
United States
Sun 28

The Empowering: A Social Justice Exhibition Curated by Danielle Scott

February 28 @ 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Jersey City NJ
United States

View More…

CONTACT US

    ADS/INFO

    For information on advertising opportunities, please contact - ads@jcitytimes.com

    For information on writing opportunities, please contact - info@jcitytimes.com

    Download our media kit here

    ABOUT US

    About Jersey City Times

    Contact Jersey City Times

    Social

    Archive

    • February 2021
    • January 2021
    • December 2020
    • November 2020
    • October 2020
    • September 2020
    • August 2020
    • July 2020
    • June 2020
    • May 2020
    • April 2020
    • March 2020
    • February 2020
    • January 2020
    • December 2019
    • November 2019
    • October 2019
    Copyright © 2020 JCityTimes.com. All Rights Reserved - powered by Enfold WordPress Theme
    Man Seriously Injured in Hit and Run City Announces Rent and Utility Assistance
    Scroll to top
    Subscribe to Our Newsletter

    Support Jersey City Times WITH A MONTHLY CONTRIBUTION

    for the price of a tall coffee at Starbucks!