911 Hang-Up Call, 6 Murders

The investigation into the Christmas eve murder of six persons in Carnation (Wash.) will include reviewing a 911 hang-up call made some time before, during or after the killings. King County sheriff”s officials said the 911 call lasted about 10 seconds, and included only background noises. A calltaker made two callbacks to the number, but both were answered by voicemail. The incident was then forwarded to the radio dispatcher as, “Heard a lot of yelling in the background … sounded more like party noise than angry heated arguing.” Two King County sheriff’s deputies were then dispatched to the rural property about 27 miles northeast of Seattle, and arrived about 26 minutes after the 911 call was made. However, the deputies encountered a locked gate blocking the driveway, couldn’t see the house from the road, and didn’t investigate further. Officials noted the property was unfenced, and deputies could simply have walked around the gate to access the property. The victims, believed to be three generations of the same family, were discovered the next day by an employer investigating why one member of the family had not showed up for work. Read more about the incident here, and the sheriff’s promise to investigate the deputies’ actions here. Should the calltaker have chacterized the call as “party noise” or simply described the sounds?