MADISON (WKOW) -- Kathleen Falk's campaign fires back at criticism over Dane County's handling of a call reporting a running automobile in which a man was later found dead.
The following information was released by Friends of Kathleen Falk, in response to opponent Nancy Mistele's criticism of how Dane County handled an incident in which a man was found dead in his car due to accidental carbon monoxide poisoning.
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Fact Check: Nancy Mistele's Latest Release Contains Multiple Errors
In her latest release (www.wispolitics.com), Nancy Mistele makes a number of untrue statements. These facts are in the public domain, through news stories covering the incident.
"When you look at Nancy's pattern, throughout her career, of being wrong on the facts, you are left with three choices," said Melissa Mulliken, campaign manager for Friends of Kathleen Falk. "Either Nancy Mistele doesn't know the facts or she chooses to ignore them or she'll say anything to get elected."
Nancy is Wrong, Part One (quotes are taken from Nancy's press release)
"Even with Kathleen Falk's so-called "when in doubt, dispatch" policy, another emergency call to our 911 center has failed to produce a police response in a case involving a death."
The Facts:
The call Nancy refers to came into a non-emergency number at 9:57 a.m. on Saturday and was not an emergency call. According to Channel 27 news, "The caller expressed aggravation, rather than concern over the situation." There was no indication of trouble and no request for police response. There was nothing in the call to raise doubt. Police were dispatched to the scene after a citizen called the 911 emergency line around 5 p.m. that day. (see Channel 27 news story http://www.wkowtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=9974478)
Nancy is Wrong Part Two:
"Yet 48 hours after the incident occurred, Kathleen Falk still has not explained exactly what happened, and why the public should have any confidence left in our emergency response center."
The Facts:
Kathleen Falk discussed this situation on camera, with Channel 27 news on Tuesday, March 10. Interim 911 Director Kathy Krusiec discussed this situation and released the tape in question on Monday, March 9. The story was covered by Channel 27 in their evening newscasts on Monday March 9. In addition, the Channel 27 story was on the station's website the afternoon of March 9. (see Channel 27 news story http://www.wkowtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=9974478)
Nancy is Wrong, Part Three:
"Over the past year, the public's confidence in the Dane County 911 Center has been badly shaken by Kathleen Falk's consistent pattern of neglect, passing the buck, covering up the facts and failing to be held accountable."
The Facts:
An independent auditor recently said the 911 center is "well run" and "operates at a high level." Since 2004 and in response to a mishandled call last year, Kathleen Falk has made changes to the 911 center including adding staff and technology. Over her tenure, Kathleen Falk has doubled the 911 Center's budget.
Nancy is Wrong, Part Four:
"Kathleen Falk recently said she had "fixed" the 911 response problem by creating a new "when in doubt, dispatch" policy that was supposed to error (sic) on the side of caution. By failing to send a timely response, the county clearly did not error (sic) on the side of caution."
The Facts:
There was a timely response. Police were dispatched after an emergency call came into the 911 Center at around 5 p.m. on Saturday in which the caller, according to Channel 27 news, "described a motionless body being inside the car."
Click here for story on the man found in his car.
