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    Patrol   Dispatcher/Jailers provide information to field units for service calls and officer initiated activity.  Their responsibilities include:  
    Detective Bureau    
    Dispatch & Jail  

Answering 9-1-1 emergency calls for service

 

  
    Traffic        
    Records Bureau  

Answering routine calls for service via our business lines  
    Reserves  

 

  
    Volunteers  

 

    
    Citizens' Academy  

Questioning callers to determine if a police response is warranted (i.e., civil vs. criminal) and what level of response to initially provide  
    Parking  

 

  
    Range  

 

    
    Alarm Permits  

 

    
    Phone Directory  

Gathering critical information and providing the information to the field units in a timely fashion  
    Links & Resources  

 

  
    S.H. Municipal Code  

 

    
    Megan's Law Website  

Helping people in the station lobby who are requesting police assistance  
           
     

Taking routine, non-critical reports from citizens in the lobby  
           
 

 

Providing calling parties with city information when other city departments are closed  
   

 

  
         
   

Providing Records Bureau functions to on-duty personnel and outside agencies after routine business hours  
   

 

  
   

 

    
   

Performing records check on persons detained in the field for warrants, driving status, and, when applicable, criminal history  
   

 

  
           
      Dispatchers/Jailers receive state certified classroom training and up to six months of one-on-one training with an experienced trainer before they are allowed to answer phones and dispatch units on their own.  
       
       
         
         
 

 

      
         
         
         
           
      When you call 9-1-1 within the city limits of Signal Hill, the call will be answered by a Dispatcher/Jailer at the Signal Hill Police Department.  This is the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP) for the City.  All 9-1-1 calls, regardless of whether they are a medical emergency, police emergency, or a misdial, are answered at this one location. 

The Dispatcher/Jailer will determine if the Signal Hill Police Department is the appropriate agency to handle your call or if your call should be transferred to another agency, such as the Long Beach Police Department, Los Angeles County Fire Department, or California Highway Patrol.

The Dispatcher will ask you a series of questions.  These questions are critical and designed to determine what level of crime, if any, has occurred.  These questions also provide the field units with critical safety information, such as the description of the suspect, weapons used/seen, location of the suspect, direction of travel, and if anyone is under the influence of alcohol or drugs.  The Dispatcher/Jailer can also determine if paramedics need to be dispatched.

While talking with the dispatcher, there may be short periods of silence.  These silent periods occur when the dispatcher is talking with the field units on the police radio.  The dispatcher who answers your 9-1-1 call is the same dispatcher who is talking to the patrol units in the field.  This provides critical information to the field officers almost instantaneously. 

Please remember to remain calm, listen carefully to what the dispatcher is saying, answer all questions as briefly and accurately as possible, and remain on the line until the dispatcher tells you it is okay to hang up. 

If you dial 9-1-1 for a non-emergency, you will be asked to hang up and dial 989-7201.  This ensures that the 9-1-1 lines are open and available for emergency calls.