Will Your Cell Phone Help in an Emergency?

By Lindy Thackston First Coast News

PALATKA, FL -- A Missouri woman dialed 911 to say her husband was attacking her. Through the screams, the 911 operator was not able to get an address from the woman.

Nobody knows what happened to her because 911 operators didn't have the technology to find her.

A 911 call was made from an apartment in Palatka shortly before midnight on July 5th.

A Palatka police officer found 25-year-old Stephen Richardson stabbed to death after his mother asked the property manager to check on him.

Investigators from the Palatka Police Department say the 911 operator could hear a click when the call came in, possibly the deadbolt locking, and then a male voice stating, "Oh God, I'm bleeding."

Putnam County 911 operators answer nearly 200 calls each day and more than half are from cell phones.

Only ten percent of those can be traced to a location.

"It's almost a misnomer that everybody now thinks if they call 911 we can automatically locate them," said Major Keith Riddick of the Putnam County Sheriff's Office. "It's not that way."

Putnam County has the newest version of 911, known as Phase 2, but that's only half the equation.

Your cell phone must be able to send that information.

Older phones and many cell phone providers don't do it.

"The cell phone that I carry is an older phone so it would not have that data," said Major Riddick. "I could call 911 right now and they would not know I'm sitting in this building."

"If you're on X provider, call them and say "Do I have a Phase 2 phone? If not, how can I get one?" advises Major Riddick.

As for the murder of Stephen Richardson, Palatka Police Chief Gary Getchell says no arrests have been made.

If you have any information, call Crime Stoppers at 1-888-277-TIPS.

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