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RALEIGH Police delayed for more than an hour after a chilling emergency call that captured a gunshot before sending officers to the home where a real estate developer killed his family and then himself.
The 74-minute delay before officers were dispatched to the home where William Maxwell shot and killed his wife and their two teenage children on Monday is part of an internal investigation, Fayetteville Police Department spokeswoman Theresa Chance said Friday.
"As for the reason for the delay, this is an internal matter that we are currently investigating and will take the appropriate course of action," Chance said in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
The first of two 911 calls to police was received at 6:38 p.m. Monday. It captured someone quietly moaning before a gunshot erupts. The call came from a landline telephone in the home, Chance said. A 911 operator is heard trying in vain to get someone to speak.
"We tried to contact that number with no response, but in fact (received) a busy signal each time we called," Chance said. "We finally left a message on the voice mail at the home. From there, we are investigating the events that took place on our end."
The police department's standard operational guideline for handling abandoned 911 calls states: "Remember, when doubt exists on whether to send a unit or not - send it!"
Chance did not respond to questions about whether the police department was equipped with an enhanced 911 communications system, which automatically captures a caller's number and address, as well as the closest police unit that can respond.
Chance said officers were ordered to the scene nine minutes before a second 911 call at 8:01 p.m. from a man who identified himself as John Fox reporting bodies and blood visible through a window. The family obituaries identify John Fox as the father of Maxwell's wife, Kathryn.
Chance did not say when officers arrived at the scene.
Hours before the slayings, friends and family gathered at the home to tell William Maxwell how much they worried about his recent demeanor that seemed far away from his normal, upbeat self.
Police said Maxwell shot and killed his wife, Kathryn, 43, and their two teenage children. The parents' bodies were found in the kitchen of their upscale home, along with that of their son, 15-year-old Cameron; daughter Connor, 17, was found in an upstairs bedroom.
While the delayed police response may be embarrassing, officers are duty-bound to protect the general public from crime rather than thwarting specific incidents, said Jeff Welty, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Government who works with attorneys for police departments.
"When law enforcement fails to prevent a crime, they usually don't incur legal liability," he said.
