This Will be Short. Honest

A good story today in the Times starts to answer some of the questions about Wednesday’s police intervention at the City Clerk’s Office to remove Deputy Clerk Cordelia Staton.

According to the article, police were dispatched to the Clerk’s Office as the result of an emergency 911 call made from City Hall. “responding to a reported disturbance,” the article says.  Sheriff’s officers patrolling the downtown area near the courthouse and county building were dispatched to assist the Trenton police, reports Meir Rinde reports. OK, that’s a little clearer.

But. Ms. Staton reported to work at 8:30 in the morning. Police arrived at City Hall at 2:30PM. We have heard no reports up until today about any “disturbance” in the Clerk’s office prior to the arrival of law enforcement. What’s up with that?

Not to keep kicking a dead horse, but this explanation still has some holes in it. If the 911 emergency system was used to report a non-emergency, that’s an abuse of the system that can result in penalties for the caller. Who made that call?

I still believe it was wrong and potentially unsafe to involve police and deputies in a politically-motivated personnel matter. Using 911 to me just compounds the seriousness, and doesn’t explain it. Every “Emergency” response by police creates volatility and uncertainty; it is unfair to the officers involved and certainly to the individuals who are the subject of the call. If the 911 system was used to respond to a political situation, not a real emergency, that’s a whole new problem.

The article quotes Sheriff Kevin Larkin:

Larkin agreed with city police that the 911 call necessitated a response.

“If I was an officer, I would have gone,” he said.

When police are unsure what awaits them at the scene, other officers are asked to provide backup.

“You don’t know whether it’s two people or 20 people,” Larkin said. “When you’re asked to assist another agency, you jump on it.”

There’s still more to this story.

That’s it. Go back to your weekend! Enjoy!