911 dispatcher accused of hanging up call during Buffalo supermarket shooting

Police walk outside the Tops grocery store on Sunday, May 15, 2022, in Buffalo, N.Y. A white 18-year-old wearing military gear and livestreaming with a helmet camera opened fire with a rifle at the supermarket, killing and wounding people in what authorities described as “racially motivated violent extremism.” (AP Photo/Joshua Bessex)

A 911 dispatcher is on leave and may lose her job after allegedly hanging up on a supermarket employee hiding during the deadly shooting rampage in Buffalo, New York.

A spokesperson for the Erie County executive said “termination will be sought” for the dispatcher.

An employee at the supermarket where 10 Black people were killed by a white gunman on Saturday told The Buffalo News that she was whispering during the 911 call because she feared the shooter would hear her.

Latisha Rogers alleges the dispatcher shouted at her, asked why she was whispering, then hung up.

The store employee then called her boyfriend and told him to call 911.

A spokesperson for the Erie County Executive said it’s not clear who hung up on whom and that officers arrived one minute after the first 911 call was made.

The dispatcher is scheduled for a disciplinary hearing next week.