when no emergency response is warranted by reporting or
causing to be reported false or misleading information
Who determines when a "response is warranted"? Karen, the Gran Torino Vietnam Vet, a jury of Karens / Vietnam Vets, the State as Prosecutor? I'm all for some liability and skin in the game against the "See Something, Say Something" madness that leads to a nation of snitches. People that pull the trigger don't seem to be on that hook and while watching K Rittenhouse's Persecution, one can see this tool being used against people of one political stripe exclusively.
What is the truth of the matter in the Beavercreek WM? Was that caller trying to mislead or was this a genuinely concerned citizen? Then we get into social media posts and political mindsets prior to / after the event and the subjective nature of what is in the heart of a caller vs what were the objective acts of the people involved.
Whenever I listen to lawyers discuss witness testimony, they mention how stories change in the courtroom vs when the event happened, how people are wise to speak to officials only after having consulted counsel and how generally unreliable witness testimony can be.
Now we're potentially charging witnesses? We seem to have purgery charges at our disposal, but they seem rather difficult to prove and are therefore not highly prioritized (I see a lot
of Hillary I was unaware, I was not aware, I don't recall, etc type testimony.).
I can appreciate that first responders (not just cops, " law
enforcement agency, emergency service provider, or public safety
answering point.") get a lot of frivolous phone calls. How many schools teach future citizens to call 9-1-1 for a variety of domestic abuse, public safety, crime, fire/health code violations, CPS, EMT, etc? How many stadiums have "See Something, Say Something" ads in them? Undoubtedly, the State openly encourages snitching and "call Daddy State: He will keep you safe". Perhaps the budget for these propaganda pieces should be scaled back, especially as we're going to fire 30-40% of hospital workers who don't take the jab. Perhaps a little more self-reliance should be encouraged, but that's outrageous...
This is written more broadly than swatting with cops. If a nervous single mom thinks her baby stopped breathing and called for an EMT, then recants? Does the EMT group call the Prosecutor's office and report a crime as she refuses to pay the bill? If an elderly patient simply falls at home? What is in bounds and out of bounds to an emergency response being warranted?
Chuck's point about divorce/custody ugliness cannot be overlooked.
Overall, beginning this conversation is positive. 9-1-1 is clearly over utilized and strains first responders by putting them out of position to respond to high priority calls. Seems a little like reaping what we've sown. What protection is there for the citizen who has a genuine concern about a man sitting alone, eating his lunch in a white van at a busy park? We've jettisoned self-government in favor of the State's ever watchful eye.
“It’s not that we don’t have enough scoundrels to curse; it’s that we don’t have enough good men to curse them.”–G.K. Chesterton-Illustrated London News, 3-14-1908
Republicans.Hate.You. See2020.
"Avarice, ambition, revenge and licentiousness would break the strongest cords of our Constitution, as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." John Adams to Mass Militia 10-11-1798