This Is No Longer a Working Number
Conspiracy to destroy evidence or a simple mechanical error? That question is begged when considering former Phoenix International Life Sciences (PILS) employee Gary Griffith's requests for 911 dispatch calls from the communications division of the Cincinnati Police Department.
Griffith ended his employment with PILS, 5642 Hamilton Ave., in 1997 after recurring situations he considered unethical (Immaterial Findings). In his crusade to rectify the wrongdoings, he requested the reports of all 911 dispatch calls to PILS. In a reply dated Aug. 24, 1999, the director of the city's police communications section informed Griffith that the records "do not include any incidents during 1996 as all of the (Regional Computer Center's) dispatch records from that year have been irretrievably lost."
Were all of the records for 1996 lost?
Yes, all radio calls -- any call, be it 911 or a complaint to the police department -- were lost, said Alan Goldschmidt, a computer systems analyst with the Regional Computer Center for the city of Cincinnati and Hamilton County.
How did this happen?
During 1996, all records were filed on tape, and this tape and the backup were erased, Goldschmidt said. The original tape could not be dubbed, he said.
"Tape media is not reliable for archival purposes," he said.
What are the ramifications?
"We were highly upset at the loss," Goldschmidt said, adding that the tapes are compiled to construct annual reports that can be used to track trends. "For example, we can use them to track the number of calls to a liquor store to see if the state should evaluate its permit renewal."
The 1996 tape was lost in 1998, but, fortunately, 1998's report already had been completed, Goldschmidt said.
As a result of this mishap, he said, the center began to archive dispatch tapes on disks.
How long are records kept on file?
"We're required by law to keep them for three years, but we usually keep them for five," Goldschmidt said.
What does Griffith think happened?
"Several possibilities," he said in an e-mail interview. "One, plain ineptitude on the computer dispatch center for losing a whole year's records. ... 2. Conspiracy of parties involved to destroy evidence so as to negate my concerns as FDA compliance director suggested were 'invalidated.' ... Either way, it is unacceptable that a major metropolitan area such as Cincinnati could lose an entire year of 911 dispatch records. It's 1999, there is no reason for such a reckless loss of public records with all the back-up features computers have these days.
"I don't think it's possible to lose an entire year of records, which would lead me to ponder if they were, in fact, actually lost in 'error' or 'on purpose.' "
That's Entertainment!
What, exactly, is being planned for Cincinnati's illustrious downtown riverfront? Something to attract -- and keep -- folks downtown, said Nick Vehr, a member of the Riverfront Advisory Committee.
Vehr was a bit tightlipped about the ideas that were tossed around by the committee, and rightly so. The committee presents its recommendations on Thursday to Cincinnati City Council, Hamilton County Commissioners and the public.
Are there plans for an entertainment district?
"It's wrong to call it an entertainment district," Vehr said. "We're planning a 24-hour, seven-day-a-week urban neighborhood with mixed-used residential housing and special retail that includes entertainment elements and office space."
What is a 24-hour urban neighborhood?
"It will be a heavy concentration of residential housing and unique anchors (the new stadiums and the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center) to attract people," Vehr said. "It is also a physical connection to the (downtown) business district and lots of green space."
Will this compete with downtown's already established Main Street or Backstage entertainment districts?
"No, absolutely not," Vehr said. "It's an opportunity to connect the Cincinnati business district with the riverfront, to connect the Northern Kentucky developments with the riverfront and to enhance other entertainment options that now exist."
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