SOP - Dispatch
Created by Drake M.
Foundation
Our mission
The mission of the Dispatch department is to facilitate and regulate communication on the LEO radio frequency, realistic handling of 911 calls and the proper initial allocation of emergency services resources.
Chain of command (CoC)
The CoC of the dispatch department can be seen in the description of the “FiveM Staff Desk” channel on Teamspeak. For any interaction with your CoC, please start at the lowest level of the chain. This is currently the Dispatch Manager: Ollie B. 286
Dispatching times
The dispatch department is the only department that allows only 3 people to participate in a patrol at the same time. Therefore a special rule is needed to ensure that everyone can enjoy their time as a dispatcher.
If you have been dispatching for a while (60 mins or 2 major priorities) please ask in the discord #dispatch channel if someone else wants to take over.
If you want to dispatch but someone else has been dispatching for a while, ask them politely if you can take over.
Remember that we still want people to get a good patrol experience. Do not force anyone out of the dispatch seat and also don’t let yourself be forced out if you haven’t been dispatching for too long.
General Procedures
Before you start
Log in to the CAD and go to “FIVEM SYSTEMS” → “SERVER 1” → “COMPUTER AIDED DISPATCH” and wait on the mainly blank screen.
Connect to the “Dispatch Comms” voice channel in discord
Connect to the TS3
Make sure your name has the format: [Name] [Unit-No]-D ***PRIM*** (or similar) or [Name] [Unit-No]-D ***SEC*** (or similar)
As primary dispatcher
Connect to the “Civilian” channel and announce that you will start dispatching. Don’t disturb those in short or long term channels as well as priority coordination. Just send them a message through ts letting them know.
Connect to the “Law enforcement radio frequency” and announce your presence (Example: “Attention all units, [Unit-No]-D is going to be 10-41 at this time active primary dispatch”)
As secondary dispatcher
Connect to the “Law enforcement radio frequency” and mute your microphone
Click the green “GO ON DUTY” button in the CAD, make sure you are completely ready to go before hitting this button!
When you leave the channel
Always announce when you leave the channel and state a reason or expected duration of your absence.
If you are going to be out-of-channel or otherwise unavailable for any period of time, log out of the CAD temporarily to allow the patrol to continue.
When you stop
Announce that you are going off-duty
If nobody else is taking over, say: “Attention all units, [Unit-No] is going to be 10-42 at this time. No primary dispatch available, self-dispatching is in effect.”
If someone else is taking over, say: “Attention all units, [Unit-No] is going to be 10-42 at this time, [New Unit-No] is going to be taking over primary dispatch.”
LOG OUT OF CAD - You will only receive one warning and receive points if it happens again.
Connect to the “Civilian” channel and announce that no dispatcher is available,
Primary and Secondary dispatcher
While there can only be 1 primary dispatcher, 2 secondary dispatchers can aid the primary in keeping the patrol under control.
Handling radio traffic
As primary dispatcher, it is your job to make sure that radio traffic is conducted as efficiently as possible while transmitting all relevant information to where it is needed.
Contact a unit by calling out their unit number and identifying yourself as “Dispatch” using “Hey you, it’s me”. (Example below)
Wait for the unit to respond
Transmit your message
There has to be a 3-5 seconds delay in between individual transmissions. This rule does not apply to units involved in a priority, units in emergency situations and dispatch.
Always relay information exactly as it was given to you and make clear who the source of the information is. Use pen and paper or a notepad document to keep track of all relevant information. Do not embellish facts with your assumptions or interpretation of the situation.
Never advise “10-4” (Affirmative) if you do not know what an officer has said. It is better to say “10-9” or “Say again last”.
Never assume! Assuming and guessing can get someone killed and it is your job to make sure that the units are always accounted for.
Do not advise units what Code they should be responding with as this is up to the officer, if an officer asks, just say “{unit number}, any code you feel is sufficient.”
Do not cancel a unit’s response unless directed by a supervisor or the primary unit on scene.
When you need to spell something, use LEO or NATO phonetics. Both can be found in the resources section.
Try to remain calm and collected at all times. A tense dispatcher can make the officers on channel uneasy and may affect the jobs they are doing.
If RTO is getting busy and you are getting too many requests at once, feel free to call out for units to standby. A suggested method of standby’s is giving each standby a number.
Channel separation
Some scenes require a lot of radio traffic but do not need frequent dispatcher intervention and will only tie the channel up unnecessarily. These types of scenes can be moved to one of the “Tac” channels in TeamSpeak. Before you move the attached units make sure that:
The scene is NOT a priority
The primary on scene/unit in command agree to the move
Moving to “Tac” will benefit the units working on the scene
Before moving units, first call all units that you are about to move and tell them that you are going to move them.
RTO Violations
If units talk over each other, hot mic or violate RTO in any way, you can issue a warning. (Keep in mind that accidents happen)
Go by a 3 strike system, 2 warnings and on the third warning, you may need to remove a unit from patrol. To do so, contact a member of the respective COC, LEO for LEO units and Fire for Fire units. If none of the respective coc are available, contact another member of coc. If you decide a staff member should be sent 10-42, follow the same process with contacting a staff member in a higher position than the person in question. If there is no staff member higher than the person in question online, contact another coc member of the same rank, note, this unit probably won’t be able to be sent 10-42.
NOTE: If a unit is sent 10-42, you MUST file a feedback even though coc are already notified.
Self-attaching
Self-attaching is when a unit responds to a call or tries to forcefully interject themselves without being sent by dispatch and is generally not permitted.
Some subdivisions that are specialized in handling certain situations may offer their services which can be declined or accepted in consultation with units on scene.
If you catch a unit self-attaching in a situation where they are not permitted to, issue a warning. If the unit self-attaches again, remove them from patrol and write a feedback in the CAD. A list of units who can self-attach is near the bottom of the SOP.
Dispatching of units
Dispatchers are responsible for the initial sending of units to incidents. Below you will see the general flow of the dispatching process. This is not a script but an example of what the dispatch process could look like.
Dispatch is made aware of the incident
A call appears in the CAD, containing a description of the incident
A call appears in the CAD, containing a civilian phone number (3-Digit ID)
Conduct a 911 call. (See “911 calls” section)
A ground unit initiates a response and calls in to dispatch
Dispatch dispatches appropriate units
Search for the closest available unit using the location info in CAD and the address map.
Dispatch creates a call in the CAD and assigns units
If a call already exists, Dispatch will put in all missing details
Ground units inform dispatch in case the call is different than indicated in the original call
If requested by units on scene, dispatch sends additionals.
Dispatch performs regular status checks (frequency depending on the type of call)
Units advise that a scene is “Secure at this time”
Non-LEO units may enter the scene
Calls that don’t involve a crime are considered secure on initial dispatch
Units advise that a scene is Code 4
No further units are required
Units advise that a call is “all clear”
Situation is resolved
All units may be marked as available
Dispatching multiple units
When dispatching multiple units to the same incident, you can address the units in groups.
Statewide Patrol
During statewide patrol, you will have to monitor the unit’s locations more closely and try to send units to calls within their current county wherever possible. To facilitate this, units can add a *BC* or *LS* identifier to their TS name. This will only need to happen for non-statewide units eg Sheriff's Office and Police Dept.
During statewide patrol All-Calls work on a 2 Level system.
Level 1: All available units in the same county will respond. Specify which county it is for.
Level 2: All available units in the state will respond
An all call should be called out similar to the following.
You should always start with a Level 1 all call unless the situation is of a very high risk. The all call can later be escalated to level 2 by responding units.
Live map
You can use the LiveMap to monitor the position of LEOs. Under no circumstances can you pass info about the location of CIVs on to the LEOs.
⚠The live map is currently disabled due to meta gaming issues. We’re working hard to bring it back as soon as we can.⚠
911 Calls
When a 911 call comes in, make sure you act swiftly and send units to higher priority calls (the more dangerous the higher priority) before tending to low priority calls (e.g. someone who wants to report a crime is not as important as a crime that is currently happening). Always dispatch units to incoming calls before you do anything else.
Some 911 calls will ask you to contact a phone number; this is a “voice 911 call”. This task will be handled by the secondary dispatcher, if one is available. If there is only a primary dispatcher available, you have to advise units that you are going to be out of channel for a 911 call. If you get a voice 911 call but RTO is too busy for you to be able to take it (Mainly if you are a lone dispatcher), it is ok to message the civ in question saying you are unable to take the voice 911 call and to advise them to put in the call through text.
Answer the call by moving to the civilian channel and informing the civilian who called that you will be moving them to the 911 calls channel.
When taking a 911 call you should always remember the 5 W's of 911 calls: Who, What, When, Where, and Why. Any information obtained must be compiled neatly and passed on to appropriate resources quickly. Always create a call containing all important information in the CAD. There are many questions to ask but the first should always be “Where is your emergency?” followed by “What is your emergency?”. If applicable, ask questions such as: “How many people do you see?” “Are there any weapons involved?” “Were you involved?” “Are you at a safe location?”
If it is not possible to dispatch a unit with current information or more information is needed later in the call, you should attempt to regain contact with the caller to acquire additional information. This is also referred to as “911 callback”. This is done by switching to the Civilian channel in teamspeak and saying:
When the recipient answers, move them to the “911 calls” channel and conduct the 911 call.
Useful information to try and obtain is:
cross streets and addresses or landmarks near the incident.
description of vehicles and suspects the caller is talking about
if anyone is harmed or in danger
Some tips while conversing with civilians:
Avoiding industry jargon (10 codes) while conversing with the citizen
Not all calls are as plain as they seem. Always try to find out about the exact reason for a 911 call
Show interest in the caller, use “Sir”, “Ma’am”, “Mr” or “Ms”
Do not use terms of endearment.
Explain holds, pauses, or delays, especially if you must quickly move out of channel.
Do not attempt to solve or mediate the problem - that’s not your responsibility.
Do not argue with the caller
Try to get as much information as possible, more is always better than less
Terminate call appropriately – e.g.: “An officer/ambulance/fire unit will respond as soon as one is available”
Make sure you know exactly where the call is taking place and what is going on. Repeat the summary of the call back to the caller if it’s possible or practical so that they can correct any mistakes you may have made (such as a vehicle being next to a river rather than inside of it etc.)
Remember to always log the phone numbers (3-Digit ID) in the description of the 911 call.
The 5 W's of 911 calls
WHERE? Where are you? Where is the scene?
WHAT? What happened?
WHO? Who's involved? Is anyone hurt?
WHEN? When did it happen? Is it going on right now?
WHY? Follow-up questions.
BOLOs
At some times ground units may wish to “put out a BOLO” or you need to put one out yourself after having received a 911 call. First, make sure you have the correct type of BOLO selected in the CAD. A BOLO is only valid if it meets the criteria listed below. If any of the information required can not be obtained, you can not put the BOLO in the CAD system.
Priority Calls (10-33)
Priority traffic is when a unit needs the radio over other calls. There are 2 types of priorities:
A priority on the LEO channel
Officer needs silence on the channel for a short period of time (e.g. foot pursuits, felony stops, ...)
An in-game priority
a situation that requires all traffic to be about a specific scene
a situation that necessitates mass police mobilization
a situation that involves possible loss of life or major injury
Both of these types of priorities need to be announced by dispatch either when you feel it is necessary to assist the ground units or when ground units request a priority is put on the channel. The proper announcements are:
During a priority, all radio traffic that is not about the priority or the requesting of non-emergency services (tow, coroner, …) is to be halted until the priority is lifted.
During a priority you should NOT interfere with LEO communications if not necessary take notes and be a passive surveyor. Try to give information to units when they request/need it to the best of your ability but don’t interrupt them during a priority.
Vehicle Pursuits
It is important that vehicle pursuits get stopped as fast as possible to avoid endangering civilians. Utilize the LiveMap to get ground units ahead of the pursuit. Try to attach units that are in the area that the pursuit is heading to, so they can set up spike-strips or roadblocks (authorized by a supervisor or the primary unit in pursuit). There should not be more than 3 units trailing a pursuit (following the suspect vehicle).
Remember to keep a number of units available for incoming 911 calls.
Panic Button (10-99)
When an officer presses their panic button or 10-99 is called over the radio, a priority is in effect immediately. You will need to send 3 to 4 units to check on the officer immediately.
As soon as a ground unit reports that they have visual contact with the person that pressed the panic button or the location and status of the officer is otherwise known, switch their status to “Out of Service”. The priority stays in effect.
Breaking Priority
Sometimes while a priority is in effect you may receive a 911 call that requires immediate action. If the call involves possible loss of life or major injury you may break the priority by saying “Break break break [message]” to get units dispatched to that other call. The priority resumes directly after your callout. Make sure to keep your callout as short as possible to allow ground units involved in the priority to use the channel again. Only break priority for calls that require immediate responses, if not, attach them via CAD and send them an “email” (message through TeamSpeak) saying “***NEW CALL ASSIGNMENT*** - Check CAD for details”.
Status checks and Roll-Calls
After a priority, or on supervisor request, it makes sense to do a Roll-Call. This means you ask every unit for their current status and set the CAD display accordingly. It is best practice to start from the top of your CAD page and work your way down to the last unit.
If you are unsure about a unit’s status or haven’t heard of them in a while you can perform a status check.
If a unit does not respond to a status check/Roll-Call; try to call them 3 times. If they still don’t respond, send 1 or 2 officers to that unit’s last known location as displayed in the CAD.
Keep in mind that a unit that is 10-6 might not be at their computer. Therefore do not initiate an all call if the unit that is not responding has the status “Busy” in the CAD.
Dispatching Fire
Whenever a taser is deployed, a fire unit should be sent to remove the prongs.
Fire callsigns
Every fire unit should be dispatched using their callsign instead of their 3-digit community number. Each fire unit will therefore advise you of their callsign when they start their tour of duty. It is your job to keep track of all fire callsigns and it is best practice to use the “officer notes” in the CAD.
The callsigns of fire units correspond to the apparatus they are running. (e.g. A fire unit staffing an ambulance will have the callsign “MEDIC [Number] or MED [Number]”)
Dispatching from the station:
When sending any fire unit from the station to a call, always call the station the fire units are located at and give them the type and address of the call. The fire units will then report back to you with their callsigns. To conclude the callout, you will give them any additional info you have gathered about the call.
The fire units calling out should tell you who is running what apparatus, if they do not, DON’T ASSUME, contact them and ask.
Dispatching civilian businesses
Sometimes civilian businesses that work together with law enforcement (e.g. Tow) may be roleplayed by civilian players. The civilians will have the name of their business in their teamspeak name. You can dispatch these civilian businesses either by sending them a DM on teamspeak or (if they do not respond) moving down to the CIV channel and saying:
Dispatching county / volunteers
When Fire/EMS/Tow/Coroner or other specialized units are requested, you may not have all specialized units available at any time.
If possible, try to dispatch a volunteer. You can ask for volunteers in the LEO and Civ channels respectively.
If no volunteer is available or a civilian business (tow/coroner) is being requested you can send "County" units. Those are imaginary units that respond to the incident autonomously.
When you are dispatching county units, you must approximate the amount of time it takes for the unit to respond. Try to give realistic response times. Example:
Ride-along policy
Law Enforcement Officers can ride together in the same car. From that point on they are to identify as: Car 1, Car 2, Car 3, … Both officers in the vehicle need to put their car number in their teamspeak name. If they forget to do so, you must remind them.
Creating AI calls
An AI call is a call made up by dispatch to keep units busy. When units are free over an extended period of time you can consider sending them on AI calls to keep them busy and give them an exciting patrol. This should not be done when the patrol is busy and any regular call has priority over an AI call.
These calls can be anything from routine business checks to odd and strange “florida-man” style of funny. There are almost no limits when creating AI calls but remember to keep it realistic and make sure you have suitable resources available (e.g.: only create medical or fire calls when dedicated personnel is available). AI calls are never priority and rarely require more than one unit. An AI call still requires an appropriate response.
When sending units to an AI call, end your callout with:
In the CAD an AI call needs to start with: “AI : “
Subdivisions
CRD
The Community Relations Division consists of two units, CAT and the Bike unit.
CAT
The community action team are not to be dispatched to high risk calls due to their lack of resources unless necessary. They may respond to all-calls.
They may not have transport capabilities and should advise you if that is true.
Bike Unit
The bike unit will consist of two qualified units, they will be in high pedestrian density areas such as Downtown and vespucci. Only to be attached to pedestrian violations and community problems within their patrol zone if possible.
The bike unit has the same high risk call policy as CAT.
GVPD
The Grapeseed Volunteer Police Department has jurisdiction within Grapeseed only. GVPD officers are not to be dispatched to any calls outside of their jurisdiction unless mutual aid is requested by another department. The only exceptions to this are if there are no other units available to take a call or if a supervisor gives them permission to leave their jurisdiction.
GVPD may leave their jurisdiction if a call they have been dispatched to moves outside of their jurisdiction. (e.g. Vehicle pursuits)
K-9
The San Andreas K-9 Unit can be used for search and rescue missions and to conduct person, vehicle or property searches.
K-9 officers can be dispatched to calls just like any other regular LEO.
PA
The Port Authority has jurisdiction on all ports and airports(Excluding Sandy & Grapeseed) as well as on any body of water.
Port Authority also needs to be dispatched to any calls related to maritime or airborne crimes or incidents(excluding accidents).
Port Authority sometimes uses maritime vessels during a patrol. In these cases, the unit’s callsign changes. The officer will advise you about their new call sign.
OFI
The Office of Fire Investigations can investigate all fires to determine the start of the fire.
OFI may only be dispatched to locations they have been requested to or that they, themselves initiate a response to.
OFI units may patrol by doing building inspections.
Ocean Rescue
Ocean Rescue is based in Station 3 on Vespucci Beach.
Ocean Rescue units will focus on incidents in the Vespucci Beach area but may also respond to all kinds of medical emergencies once all other fire resources have been exhausted. Ocean Rescue should be called as an assisting unit to any dive-rescue operations.
TEMS
Tactical EMS is a medical unit that can provide medical services on scenes which are not Code 4 or safe to enter.
HRO
HRO is a division in the SAFR, they deal with heavy rescues, rope rescues, water rescues as well as search and rescues and HAZMAT incidents.
ARFF
Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting is a division of the SAFR, they are based at station 4 at LSIA and primarily deal with aircraft incidents but the personnel can be dispatched to any Fire/EMS-related call if no other assets are available.
DFW
The Department of Fish and Wildlife have Statewide Jurisdiction and are to be dispatched primarily to all Hunting/Fishing violations and nuisance animals. Secondly Fish and Wildlife Officers may be dispatched out to normal calls and backup requests if they are the only units available/in the area of a violent crime
The department of fish and wildlife subdivision has a helicopter which specially trained DFW officers may use. The aircraft operates with the callsign Eagle. While an officer is operating the aircraft, they can not be attached to any calls. They also have a boat which can be used. This has no callsign.
Park Rangers
The Park Rangers are a sub unit of DFW, they have the same jurisdiction as regular wildlife officers but they mainly focus on the parks of San Andreas. They are to stay in State Parks unless there is an all-call
TEU
The Traffic Enforcement Unit needs to be dispatched to all traffic-related incidents (e.g. traffic accidents) and can otherwise be dispatched like any other officer.
Only one TEU unit may participate in a vehicle pursuit at a time. (If no other units are available, more TEU units may be attached.) Other TEU units may be called in to set up spike-strips or a roadblock (after supervisor/primary ground unit approval).
MBU
Same responsibilities as TEU.
If possible, MBU should not be dispatched to shots fired calls due to the lack of physical protection. They may still need to respond to priorities though.
Primary on all motorcycle pursuits.
Gang Unit
There are two types of gang unit officers.
Uniformed officers (marked by a (U) in TeamSpeak) can be dispatched to any calls within their jurisdiction.
Non-uniformed officers (marked by not having a (U) on TeamSpeak) can only be dispatched to gang related calls and violent felonies (stabbing, shooting, etc…)
Gang Unit officers should only participate in pursuits that are gang related or originate from within their jurisdiction.
Gang Unit jurisdiction:
Transit Authority
The Transit Police has jurisdiction over all bus terminals, metro stations, and railway facilities.
CVE
Deals with Transit related calls and Commercial Vehicle Enforcement, should be dispatched to calls involving commercial vehicles and can otherwise be dispatched like any other officer
They are primary on all commercial vehicle pursuits.
SEU
The Speed Enforcement Unit can be dispatched just like any other LEO.
The Speed Enforcement Unit does not have transport capabilities.
CIU
The Criminal Investigation Unit needs to be dispatched to all calls related to shootings, violent crimes, drugs, homicide, and whenever they are requested.
When a CIU unit is requested and one is not available, you should ask for a volunteer CIU or CST on the LEO frequency and in the Civilian channel.
CST
Crime Scene Technicians are civilians that work for the LEO authority. Therefore they can not enter scenes that are not secure and need to stage outside like an ambulance or tow truck.
ASU
Air Support Unit aircraft need to be manned by at least 2 qualified individuals to be able to take off.
All ASU aircraft can conduct maintenance flights when there is no need for units on ongoing calls.
Air One
Air One is our LEO helicopter. It can be used to assist during pursuits, for search and rescue operations and aerial surveillance.
Trained personnel are able to operate the helicopter without a call in order to be ready and available when the aircraft is needed.
ATSU
The Aerial Transportation Safety Unit does not take up any of the responsibilities/duties of a regular LEO. They can not participate in vehicle pursuits but are allowed to assist in high-risk situations.
ATSU will patrol and carry out operations according to their SOP. ATSU can be dispatched to any aircraft-related incidents.
Medflight
The MedFlight helicopter is used in Search & Rescue operations, when patients are in a hard to reach area by ground personnel, and to transport patients in critical condition. MedFlight can also be used in support of PA operations out at sea.
Medflight can only be activated on ground unit request.
SWAT
The Special Weapons and Tactics Team can be deployed to high risk situations on request of a unit on scene. These teams can not respond to regular calls. When requested, qualified officers can be called to assemble a SWAT team at any police station.
There are many different Types of SWAT deployments in addition to the standard SWAT Teams. These have their own set of rules and guidelines due to the nature of SWAT related incidents, special adaptation to the specific call is required and so, multiple subgroupings and types of units exist within swat. If you are interested in the specifics of these special types of units, you can find more reading material here.
Rapid Response Unit (RRU)
The RRU consists of a maximum of two officers and may patrol in LS county. RRU should not participate in pursuits and should only be attached to calls where a large amount of violence is to be predicted. RRU can be attached to other calls if no other units are available.
The RRU can provide support for APETS (rolling road blocks) if there are no other units available.
Resources
Self-Attaching units.
The following units may self-attach to calls within their jurisdiction.
If units are not listed here, they may not self-attach to any types of calls.
Glossary
Departmental identifiers
Special callsigns
LEO
Car # - Two officers in the same vehicle.
PA
Patrol # / P # - Small PA Boat
Interceptor # / INT # - Medium PA Boat
Sea Rescue # / SR # - Large PA Boat (Only on open ocean)
DFW
Eagle - DFW Helicopter
ASU
Air # - LEO Helicopter unit
AirMed # - Medical Helicopter
SWAT
Hawk - SWAT Air Support Helicopter
SAFR
STN # - Unit is at this station
Medic # / MED # - Ambulance unit
Engine # / ENG # - Engine unit
Brush # / BRSH # - Brush Truck unit
Ladder # / LDR # - Ladder unit
Rescue # / RESC # - Rescue unit
Fly # - Rapid response vehicle for quick response times and for ALS assistance.
Battalion # / BATT # - A member of Fire coc responding to a scene.
TEMS # - TEMS unit
Otter # / OTR # - A fire boat
Rover # / RVR # - Fire gator.
*The # symbol represents a number for the callsign
Phonetic Alphabets
Approved 10-Codes
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