On New Years Eve, the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department faced a technical issue which affected its computer dispatch system. The disruption occurred several hours before midnight, rendering patrol vehicle computers essentially unusable. The system failure coincided with wide-ranging New Years Eve celebrations, and other scheduled events across the region such as illegal firework shows and the imminent Rose Parade and bowl game.
The department began receiving reports of the issue around 8 p.m., initiated by deputies from various stations who experienced difficulties logging onto their patrol vehicle computers. The root cause of the system failure is unclear, however it was later reported that the computer-aided dispatch program (CAD) was not allowing deputies to log in with new year, subsequently rendering the system inoperable. Meanwhile, the other departmental systems such as the 911 lines, deputies body-worn cameras, and emails, continued functioning as usual.
The failure of the CAD meant that emergency details had to be manually noted by phone operators and then passed on to dispatchers, who relayed the information through radio calls to deputies. Despite the difficulties, the deputies were able to respond to emergency calls, which were being manually tracked at the station level. An effort to rectify the technical glitch is ongoing, with the Department collaborating with the Los Angeles County Internal Services Department to devise temporary and long-term solutions.
Richard Pippin, the President of the Association for Los Angeles Deputy Sheriffs, criticized the system failure and stated that the Department lacks adequate resources in terms of training, facilities, equipment, and technology. In December 2023, in response to ongoing technological challenges, a formal request to acquire a new, modernized, and centralized CAD system was presented. Sheriffs officials cited an urgent need to enhance and upgrade the Departments internal systems.
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