An audit of the Orange County Sheriff's Office has uncovered significant discrepancies in the reported versus actual 911 call response times, leaving the efficacy of emergency response protocols in doubt. According to ClickOrlando, the office fell short of the state mandate that requires 90% of calls to be answered within 10 seconds. The audit, brought to light yesterday by Orange County Comptroller Phil Diamond, revealed that in 2024, only 75.5% of calls were picked up within the crucial 10-second window, contravening previously reported statistics claiming more than 97% compliance.
The discrepancies stem from how call answering times were calculated, emphasizing a gap in the experience of residents seeking urgent help and the publicized figures. As detailed by ClickOrlando, callers placed on hold were not immediately connected with an operator, a fact not accounted for in official statistics. The audit cites a case in October where a caller was on hold for 56 seconds, with the sheriff's office reporting a misleading one-second response time. Even though the counts of calls answered within the 10-second window were 66% in 2022 and around 61% in 2023, the sheriff's office had reported much higher compliance rates of 80% and 82%, respectively.
Responding to the audit's findings, Orange County Undersheriff Mark Canty admitted to WESH that there was an error in calculating the time correctly, clarifying that the responsibility for such calculations does not lie with the sheriff's office staff but with the county's 911 office. Despite this, Sheriff John Mina accepted most of the recommendations suggested in response to the comptroller's findings.
Orange County Government issued a statement, also picked up by WESH, expressing appreciation for the "insights provided by the Comptroller's Audit Department" and asserting a continued commitment towards improving public safety. The administration pledges to innovate and collaborate with the OCSO and our nine PSAPS to improve lifesaving and safety measures for our residents and visitors, offering reassurances that they are addressing the limitations identified by the audit.
