Police Services

Dispatch

Here are some tips when reporting a crime that will help the Dispatcher and in turn help you.

  • Do not call 911 unless for an emergency. It is unfortunate when people who really need help must wait while the dispatcher answers a 911 call that is not an emergency. Loud music, barking dogs, requesting a phone number are not emergency situations.
  • Please do not call the police department for phone numbers. Use a phone book or call information. Dispatchers are very busy and may be handling an emergency call.
  • Do not be abusive to the Dispatchers. The dispatcher must ask questions in order to better prepare the officer to better serve you.
  • Be a good witness. Clothing descriptions, license plates, and direction of travel are all important to assist officers in cases. Do not take risks to obtain this information, if it becomes available take note, this will help your case.

The Sunnyside Police Department has its own dispatch center. The Dispatch Center is home to the radio, door control panel, alarm computer, ACCESS computer, Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD), security monitors, intercom system, phone, fax, and data recorder. The room is manned by a dispatcher. The Dispatch Center has been manned 24 hours a day since January 1997.
   
During the course of a shift the dispatch center can become extremely busy. A dispatcher must simultaneously answer phones, listen to radio traffic, and provide information to officers. Dispatchers must prioritize calls based on threat to life and threat to property.

The Sunnyside Dispatchers are the voice of the victim.  They relay critical information and your needs for assistance in a fast and efficient manner. The role of the Sunnyside dispatcher has been related to that of an air traffic controller.

The picture shows the main dispatch station, the monitor on the left is the ACCESS computer. This allows dispatcher to access information from the Department of Licensing, FBI computer, and even files from other countries. Only trained and certified persons use this computer. Dispatchers are certified ACCESS Level II. The computer on the right is the Spillman Computer. This is home to CAD or computer aided dispatch. CAD allows the dispatcher to send calls to the MDC and keeps track of the officers status and location. Dispatchers can access previous records and local arrest information in seconds.  The small blue screens on the left are security cameras. The dispatcher must watch and maintain department security when required. The black panel on the right with the red lights is the door control panel. The dispatcher must open and close doors as needed to ensure security in the jail as well as the rest of the building.
911
   
The Sunnyside Dispatch Center is a secondary 911 service provider for Yakima County. In the  event that the 911 service center in Yakima becomes unable to function the calls will be rerouted to the Sunnyside Dispatch Center.
   
All phone calls and radio transmissions are recorded. The recording unit stores the transmissions and phone calls to a CD style disk. The digital information can be played back at anytime. One of these special disks can hold weeks of phone and radio conversations. The recording unit itself is about the size of a VCR.