Did Wrong Transfer Affect Murder Outcome?

The families of two Lowell (Mich.) persons are wondering if their murder-suicide could have been prevented if dispatchers had not transferred a 911 to the wrong agency last week. A 20 year-old woman called to say that her uncle was slashing the neck of his ex-girlfriend, and before police could arrive and move in to the house in the small town (pop. 4,164), the man had cut his own throat and died. The caller used a cellular phone to dial 911, and the call was received by the state police comm center, but then disconnected before the caller said what city she was in. A call back reached the caller, but the dispatcher transferred her to the Kent County Sheriff, instead of Lowell city police. Read more and listen to the telephone calls here, and also read the Web page comments.