Monday, July 27, 2009

Transcript: 911 Call, Gates Case

From the Boston Globe, here's the transcript of the 911 call that brought Sgt. Jim Crowley to the home of Henry Louis Gates:

Dispatcher: Tell me exactly what happened

Caller: Umm, I don’t know what’s happening. I just have an elder woman, uh, standing here and she had noticed two gentlemen trying to get in a house at that number, 17 Ware St., and they kind of had to barge in. And they broke the screen door and they finally got in and when I had looked, I went further, closer to the house a little bit, after the gentlemen were already in the house, I noticed two suitcases So I’m not sure if these are two individuals who actually work there, I mean who live there.

Dispatcher: You think they might’ve been breaking...

Caller: I don’t know, ‘cause I have no idea, I just noticed...

Dispatcher: So you think the possibility might have been there or...? What do you mean by barged in? Did they kick the door in or...?

Caller: Umm, no they were pushing the door in, like uhhh, ummm, like the screen part of the front door was kind of like cut.

Dispatcher: How did they open the door itself, the lock?

Caller: I didn’t see a key or anything ‘cause I was a little bit away from the door but I did notice that they pushed their...

Dispatcher: And what did the suitcases have to do with anything?

Caller: I don’t know. I’m just saying that’s what I saw. I just [inaudible]

Dispatcher: Do you know what apartment they broke into?

Caller: No, just the first floor. I don’t even think that it’s an apartment. It’s 17 Ware St. It’s a house. It’s a yellow house. Number 17. I don’t know if they live there and they just had a hard time with their key, but I did notice that they had to use their shoulder to try to barge in and they got in. I don’t know if they had a key or not ‘cause I couldn’t see from my angle. But you know when I looked a little closely that’s when I saw...

Dispatcher: (inaudible) black or Hispanic? Are they still in the house?

Caller: They’re still in the house I believe, yeah.

Dispatcher: Are they white, black or Hispanic?

Caller: Umm, well there were two larger men, one looked kind of Hispanic, but I’m not really sure. And the other one entered and I didn’t see what he looked like at all. I just saw it from a distance and this older woman was worried, thinking someone’s breaking in someone’s house, they’ve been barging in, and she interrupted me, and that’s when I had noticed. Otherwise, I probably wouldn’t have noticed it at all, to be honest with you. So I was just calling ‘cause she was a concerned neighbor, I guess.

Dispatcher: OK, are you standing outside?

Caller: I’m standing outside, yes.

Dispatcher: All right, well, police are on the way, you can meet them when they get there. What’s your name?

Caller: My name is [deleted].

Dispatcher: All right, they’re on their way.

Caller: OK, all right, I guess I’ll wait. Thanks.

Audio here.

Gates should be thankful that he has concerned neighbors.

2 comments:

Susan (rainy) said...

He should also be grateful that there are police who would protect him if he needed it. But he may have shot himself in the foot...

I think if any robber in the country wants an easy mark it would be Gates’ home. I can see him calling 911, “I need help! There’s a robber that just broke into my home.” Police response, “Yay we’ll be right there… NOT!”

Mary said...

You can be sure that neighbors won't be calling 911 to protect Gates' property.