News

Deputies make arrest after victim texts, 'My husband's trying to kill me'

By Bill Moss, Published: January 3, 2018

A victim who feared for her safety if she made a phone call instead sent a text message to 911, giving her address and typing, "My husband is trying to kill me. He won’t let me leave. He has 2 guns." As a result of the woman's quick thinking, dispatchers sent deputies to the address, rescued the woman and arrested her husband and charged him with assault on a female.

The successful rescue of the woman and arrest of her abuser led the Sheriff’s Office to remind the public that texting 911 is an option in an emergency.

“We take great pride in our accessibility and responsiveness at the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office,” said Sheriff Charles McDonald. “We are thankful this member of the public reached out to us via text so our deputies could curb a quickly escalating situation and provide her with the help she needed. We hope by sharing this incident, the public will be reminded of this lifesaving communication tool we have in our county.”

Significant benefits of texting 911 service include accessibility for members of the community who are hard of hearing, deaf, or speech-impaired. Text to 9-1-1 can also aid in situations when a crime is in progress, a caller is facing domestic abuse, or a caller’s injury is making speech impossible. A good rule of thumb to follow is, “Call if you can, text if you can’t.”

If calling 9-1-1 is not an option: The numbers “911” should be entered in the “To” field and the message should be brief and contain the location of the emergency and the type of help needed. It should be noted, you can make a voice call to 9-1-1 using a wireless phone that does not have a service plan, but you cannot send a text message to 9-1-1 without a service contract that includes texting. Messages are limited to 160 characters and photo/video cannot be sent at this time, although that may change as the technology becomes available. And as always, do not text and drive.