Calif. Court OKs Dispatcher’s Arrest of Caller

A California appeals court has upheld the conviction of a man who made 40 harassing 911 calls to a Palm Springs police department dispatcher over several hours, saying the dispatcher did not need to physically confront the suspect in order to legally make a citizen’s arrest. Craig Bloom used profanity, screamed into the phone and “babbled,” police say, and the dispatchers tracked him to a pay phone. After he continued to call, and the dispatchers began hanging up on him, one of them signed a citizen’s arrest form and sent officers to the pay phone. Officers confronted Bloom, who admitted making the calls and then resisted arrest. He was jailed, but appealed his subsequent conviction, claiming the officer’s didn’t legally execute the citizens arrest because the dispatcher wasn’t physically present. But the Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled the offense was made in the dispatcher’s “presence,” which includes handling the phone call. They also said her physical presence wasn’t required, given Bloom’s mental state and her need to be present for official duties. Download (pdf) the court’s ruling here.