HIALEAH, FLA. (WSVN) - A councilman is taking legal action against the mayor of Hialeah, alleging negligence in the city’s emergency response system.
Councilman Bryan Calvo’s lawsuit follows revelations that the city’s 911 system missed over 32,000 calls in the past two years, leaving callers in distress without assistance.
On Wednesday, Calvo conducted a news conference where he discussed legal action against Mayor Esteban Bovo.
“The actions taken, unfortunately by Mayor Steve Bovo, undermine the authority that I have as a council member and the authority granted to other council members under the City Charter and the Code of Ordinances,” said Calvo. “What I’m asking for, really, in this lawsuit is, let’s not set a precedent that elected officials are going to be charged for doing their job. What I’m really asking for is, let me do my job without charging me.”
In June, Councilman Calvo called for an investigation into the operations of Hialeah’s 911 call center.
“I think what’s irresponsible is to try and sweep this under the rug and pretend that it doesn’t exist,” Calvo stated at the press conference in June. “Clearly, something is going on in that department, and we need to get to the bottom of it and we need to find solutions for it.”
Despite his calls for transparency, no action was taken to address the issue, prompting him to take legal action against the city’s mayor, Wednesday.
“[On October 3], I received a communication from the city clerk saying that I was going to be charged approximately $7,000 in records for the records that I was requesting,” stated Calvo in Wednesday’s news conference. “Never in the history of Hialeah has an elected official been charged, or has been forced to pay, to receive public documents. It’s never happened.”
Over the past several months, Councilman Calvo has cited multiple sources, including a March 2022 report that he claims was commissioned by the mayor.
“This report showed, and I quote, ‘that the city’s 911 system is woefully understaffed,'” said Calvo in June’s press conference.
In March of this year, a call center worker brought his concerns to the council.
“We’re severely understaffed, and the future outlook for our division is poor if drastic changes are not made,” said the worker.
Citizen complaints were also reported by El Nuevo Herald, specifically, when an off-duty firefighter dialed 911 after an auto accident.
“He called and no one answered,” stated Calvo, referencing the aforementioned incident.
Calvo also mentioned that no one answered when a woman called after her husband fell from the roof.
In August, Mayor Bovo addressed the issue in a news conference.
“There are no missed calls; there are calls that go into our system and are somehow another loss due to somebody hanging up,” said the mayor. “Like I said, a misdial. If it does ring once or twice and somebody hangs up, it could be a nervous caller. And then they’re being called back.”
Calvo’s determination to uncover the truth stems from a commitment to the residents of Hialeah.
“We need an investigation. The residents of Hialeah deserve transparency,” he said.
Mayor Bovo has been reached out for comment on this lawsuit.
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