I live on the barrier island in Delray Beach and recently experienced 19-minute police response time (18:49 to be exact) after calling 911, confirmed by my phone records and surveillance footage.
At a recent City Commission meeting, a commissioner and the city manager publicly disputed this fact without evidence and Commissioner Juli Casale stated that she was “fairly certain” that my claim “wasn’t accurate,” followed by City Manager Terrence Moore saying, “not accurate at all. … We’re doing great.”
This delay and lack of police presence on the barrier island is unacceptable and puts all barrier island residents at risk.
Furthermore, when city officials publicly challenge verified claims, it undermines trust in our local government.
I respectfully urge the city to allocate adequate police patrols here. Residents pay significant property taxes and deserve reliable public safety and honest communication.
For privacy reasons, I request that my name be withheld from publication.
— William,
barrier island resident
Delray Beach
Editor's note: An event report obtained from police by The Coastal Star shows the call was received at 5:01 p.m. and the first dispatch was 8 minutes and 16 seconds later. No time is listed for when the officer arrived. The report said the suspicious incident reported turned out to be an Instacart delivery.
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