Oregon Woman Told by 911 There are no cops availableJust ask him to go away Right Before Sexual AssaultKimberly Paxton If you live in Josephine County, Oregon, apparently theyre only minutes away on weekdays. Budget cuts have reduced department coverage to only 5 days per week. An unidentified woman was physically and sexually assaulted by her ex-boyfriend, Michael Bellah, after calling 911, only to be told that it was unfortunate that there were no officers to help her that day. Uh, I dont have anybody to send out there, the 911 dispatcher told the woman. You know, obviously, if he comes inside the residence and assaults you, can you ask him to go away? Do you know if hes intoxicated or anything? The woman told the dispatcher that Bellah previously attacked her and left her hospitalized a few weeks prior to the latest incident. The dispatcher stayed on the phone with the woman for more than 10 minutes before the sexual assault took place. Once again its unfortunate you guys dont have any law enforcement out there, the dispatcher said, according to Oregon Public Radio. The woman responded: Yeah, it doesnt matter, if he gets in the house Im done. (source) Josephine County Sheriff Gil Gilberson was relatively unsympathetic. There isnt a day that goes by that we dont have another victim. If you dont pay the bill, you dont get the service. It appears that a call to 911 is more likely to get someone there after the crime than to prevent the crime before it happens. Clearly, a 911 call to stop the criminal is an exercise in futility, and prevention is now largely up to the individual. Its interesting to note that counties across the country are cutting back on police officers, but these budget cuts dont seem to have slowed down the purchases of ammo by the federal government. Kimberly Paxton, a staff writer for the Daily Sheeplewhere this article first appearedis based out of upstate New York. linkwithin_text=Related Articles: 