Lenawee County Sheriff Troy Bevier said the office is one of the few agencies in Ohio currently using video sharing technology.
ADRIAN, MI — Lenawee County can now show emergency responders what you see when you call 911 in an emergency because the sheriff may offer video calling as part of its dispatch service.
“I think this technology, being able to videotape something and then send that video to dispatch is really eyes and ears,” Lenawee County Sheriff Troy Bevier said.
A person calling 911 can ask to share their video camera, and dispatchers will send a link to the user’s phone. The link will request permission for the manager to access the user’s camera.
“If one of our callers gets a 911 call, if it’s an incident, they feel that scene surveillance can help, they can send the caller a link,” said dispatch director Corinne Perdue.
Dispatchers say it’s for incidents like car accidents, fires or burglaries.
“It gives us a tool that we can have,” dispatcher Chris Hudson said. “Someone at the scene can give us video so we can see what’s going on via cell phone instead of relying on someone’s description of what’s going on.”
Bever said the Lenawee County Sheriff’s Office is one of the few agencies in Ohio currently using video sharing technology, but he believes more will adopt it over the next few years.
“It’s really in line with what’s called ‘next-generation 911’ … it’s just being able to get more information, get more information to dispatch,” Beauvier said.
Bever said people don’t have to use video when calling police unless it’s necessary. They don’t want you to put yourself in danger just to get a video.
https://www.wtol.com/article/news/local/lenawee-co-sheriffs-office-911-video-calls/512-86ac80c6-45b2-42be-afbd-0f427f14ad77
