Porter County plans to forge ahead with its new operating procedure for handling 911 police calls from Porter and Chesterton starting Wednesday, April 1, despite a plea from officials of the two towns who want a delay.
Chesterton and Porter police and town officials met Friday morning with the Porter County Commissioner and Debby Gunn, the county’s Porter County Central Communications executive director. The one-hour meeting at the county administration meeting was contentious at times.
There is a history of tension that erupted after the June 18 officer-involved shooting outside the Hilton Garden Inn in Chesterton. The suspect fatally shot himself and Chesterton Police Officer Nolan Mancera was wounded. Porter County Commissioner Jim Biggs, R-North, had called the Post-Tribune on the day of the shooting, saying it was time to consider joining Porter County E 911. Chesterton and Porter have a separate joint dispatch for police calls, though 911 calls first go to Porter County E 911.
Chesterton and Porter town officials during the summer called for Gunn to resign because of how she questioned the performance of the Chesterton/Porter police dispatch on June 18. Chesterton Police Chief Tim Richardson admitted during Friday’s meeting that he wouldn’t meet with Gunn without another person present to witness the conversation.
He said he had seen some of the inner communications, which he later confirmed were between Biggs and Gunn from around the day of the shooting.
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“The things you guys said to each other in text messages and emails was one of the worst things I have read,” Richardson said.
Biggs later stated during the meeting: “It is stunning to me that anybody in this room, the Board of Commissioners or the 911 department would enact any type of policy with Porter or the town of Chesterton that we felt would endanger our residents or our officers.”
County commissioners on March 10 adopted the new standard operating procedure that calls for the county’s 911 operators to stay on the line with a 911 caller throughout an incident, rather than transferring the caller to the separate dispatch center for Porter and Chesterton Police.
Chesterton and Porter police believe the new setup would be “inefficient” because officers wouldn’t be able to further question the caller. Chesterton Council President Erin Collins, D-2nd, said the safety of police officers and residents could be jeopardized.
There is a possibility that Porter County Commissioners could reconsider the April 1 startup date at its Tuesday meeting, but that will depend on what Gunn recommends, Biggs said.
Gunn will meet Monday with Chesterton and Porter Police officials at Chesterton Town Hall to discuss the standard operating procedure in an attempt to work through outstanding issues.
Chuck Parkinson, the associate town attorney for Chesterton, at one point suggested that the new procedure be paused until Oct. 1.
“What we’re asking for is that there be some cooperation and delay in the implementation of the policy. Hearing this morning, there are points that County 911 wants to make, there are points that the towns of Porter and Chesterton want to make about this particular policy,” Parkinson said
Biggs flatly stated no, saying that the issue has been discussed for months. But, Biggs said, if Gunn states after her Monday meeting in Chesterton that more time is needed, then there could be a pause.
Friday’s meeting started with Biggs apologizing for not having a promised meeting with Chesterton and Porter town officials before the commissioners voted on March 10. He said he didn’t, in part, because he found that all Chesterton and Porter police officers wouldn’t be automatically summoned on 911 calls, which was an initial misunderstanding he had.
But Collins retorted: “The primary issue is that the county was going to hold the call and not transfer the call, once an officer was dispatched.”
Under the new standard operating procedure, Biggs noted that Chesterton and Porter would be treated the same as the other police agencies that use Porter County E911.
Gunn said that if Chesterton and Porter police officers have a follow-up question for the 911 caller, they can contact the Porter County E911 dispatcher.
Porter Councilwoman Kelly Karriman countered that Chesterton and Porter police are different because they have their own joint dispatching center.
Porter Police Chief Dan Dickey said that a police officer could be responding to a call about a fight down at Porter Beach and might have a follow-up question about whether a weapon was involved in the fight.
Dickey noted that while Gunn says officers can contact Porter County dispatchers, the new standard operating procedure states: “Porter County Central Communications will not be responsible for maintaining communication with Chesterton/Porter Police officers beyond initial dispatch.”
Gunn said she would be willing to look at the wording of the policy and appreciated the input.
Another issue that seemingly was settled concerned the use of Computer Assisted Dispatch for calling Chesterton and Porter Police officers. Chesterton Assistant Police Chief Cisco Rodriguez said that he tested the system and the chief of detectives ended up being called, who usually doesn’t do initial response.
Andrew Barber, the assistant director of Porter County Central Communications, said the CAD system could be modified to ensure that only officers on patrol duty would be called.
Toward the end of the meeting, Richardson said that the change in policy would “hamstring” the Chesterton/Porter police dispatch operation, pushing the two towns toward consolidating.
Biggs denied that the county is pushing the two towns toward consolidation with Porter County E911. But he said that Porter County has invested millions in its 911 equipment. Gunn also noted that Porter County E911 is the primary agency for handling 911 calls under Indiana law, which is driving the new policy.
In reply to a question from Chesterton Councilman Dane Lafata, Gunn also stated that Porter County E911, with 32 employees, is able to handle Porter and Chesterton’s 911 calls. The county dispatch already handles all fire calls for Chesterton and Porter.
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Jim Woods is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.