A critical lifeline for one of the busiest sheriff’s departments in the country remains down days after the issue first surfaced. The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department suffered a major outage on New Year’s Eve when its antiquated dispatch system crashed, forcing deputies to rely on radio communication to respond to emergencies.
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The LASD uses a computer-aided dispatch system that sends patrol units to calls. However, on Thursday, Jan. 2, deputies were unable to log into the system as usual, taking it out of service for nearly 10,000 deputies.
Officials said calls for service are still being responded to but they are being manually tracked at the station level.
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The department emphasized that 911 lines haven’t been affected by the outage. Officials are working to resolve the technical issue.
This isn’t the first time the department has faced technical challenges with its dispatch system.
According to the Los Angeles Times, some deputies said they are used to handling calls by radio when the system goes down for maintenance. However, those outages are usually planned and short-lived.
The timing of the malfunction raised concern, as it occurred on the same day as the Rose Bowl football game and the Rose Parade. One deputy told the Times it was a “scary” problem to grapple with during such a high-profile event.
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In 2023, the department submitted proposals to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to modernize its dispatch system. LASD officials cited its long history with outdated technology and its inability to gather data effectively.
Officials haven’t confirmed what caused the issue or how long it will take to fix the system.
[Karah Rucker]
A LIFELINE FOR ONE OF THE BUSIEST SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENTS IN THE COUNTRY IS STILL DOWN – DAYS AFTER THE ISSUE FIRST SURFACED.
THE L-A COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT SUFFERED AN OUTAGE ON NEW YEAR’S EVE.
AN ANTIQUATED DISPATCH SYSTEM CRASHED – PUSHING ALL DEPUTIES TO RELY ON RADIO.
L-A-S-D USES A COMPUTER AIDED SYSTEM THAT SENDS PATROL UNITS TO EMERGENCIES
ON THURSDAY THE DEPARTMENT COULDN’T LOG INTO THE SYSTEM AS NORMAL PUTTING IT OUT OF SERVICE FOR CLOSE TO TEN THOUSAND DEPUTIES
OFFICIALS SAY “Calls for service are still being responded to and are being manually tracked at the station level”
ACCORDING TO THE DEPARTMENT, 911 LINES AREN’T IMPACTED BY THE OUTAGE AND THEY’RE WORKING TO FIND A SOLUTION TO RESOLVE THE TECHNICAL ISSUE.
THIS ISN’T THE FIRST TIME IN RECENT YEARS THE DEPARTMENT HAS BEEN FORCED TO HANDLE CALLS THE OLD-FASHIONED WAY.
ACCORDING TO THE LA TIMES SOME DEPUTIES SAID THEY WERE USED TO GOING BACK TO “SELF-DISPATCH” AND HANDLING CALLS BY RADIO WHEN THE SYSTEM GOES DOWN FOR MAINTENANCE — BUT THAT THOSE OUTAGES ARE TYPICALLY PLANNED AND SHORT.
THE TIMING OF THE MALFUNCTION ALSO SPARKED SOME CONCERN. ONE DEPUTY TELLING THE TIMES IT WAS A QUOTE “SCARY” PROBLEM TO GRAPPLE WITH ON THE DAY OF THE ROSE BOWL FOOTBALL GAME AND ROSE PARADE.
IN 2023 THE DEPARTMENT SUBMITTED PROPOSALS TO MODERNIZE THE DISPATCH SYSTEM…REFERENCING THE AGENCY’S LONG HISTORY WITH OUTDATED TECHNOLOGY AND ITS INABILITY TO GATHER DATA EFFECTIVELY.
OFFICIALS HAVEN’T CONFIRMED WHAT CAUSED THE ISSUE OR HOW LONG IT WILL TAKE TO FIX.
FOR STRAIGHT ARROW NEWS, I’M KARAH RUCKER
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