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FRIDAY, JANUARY 25, 2002

A 911 operator who took one of the calls from two Aboriginal sisters killed in a domestic violence dispute testified on Thursday that there are no dedicated 911 operators at some of the most busy times of the year.

Eric Czerwonka, a 20-year veteran of the Winnipeg, Manitoba, police communications center, handled the first call by Corrine McKeown and Doreen Leclair. Not having dedicated operators is a violation of police policy, he said.

The sisters, who lived in a poor neighborhood in Winnipeg that has a high Native population, had made five calls to 911 the night they died in February 2000. Police responded to the first call but were unable to determine the man who killed them was the ex-boyfirend of McKeown, who had a restraining order against him.

Police responded to the last call and found the women stabbed to death.

Get the Story:
Inquest told 911 not always staffed (CBC 1/24)

Relevant Links:
The 911 Tapes - http://www.cbc.ca/news/indepth/911_tapes

Related Stories:
Death of Native women scares 911 (1/24)
Death of sisters haunts 911 operator (1/23)