Local News in Brief : Deputy Taken Off Emergency Line Duty

A Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy is no longer answering 911 emergency calls while the department investigates how he handled two calls for help this month, authorities said Monday.

Deputy Jim Greene, a 25-year-veteran of the department, has been assigned to other administrative duties at the sheriff’s station in Valencia, Lt. Antonio M. Madrid said.

Sheriff’s officials last week revealed that Greene said “have a nice day” and hung up on a man who was trying to report a gang shooting in Newhall and who said he feared he was about to be killed.

Madrid said the investigation was widened Monday to include Greene’s handling of a Jan. 6 call from a Castaic hamburger restaurant. An employee of the restaurant reportedly said the deputy hung up on her after she called to report that a vagrant would not pay for his food or leave.

“Generically speaking, someone not paying a bill or throwing trash around is not an emergency call,” Madrid said. “We prioritize calls. What citizens think is a priority and what we feel is a priority are often different.”