Canton heart attack victim's family claims 911 dispatchers intentionally turned off system

Stephen Green dies of heart attack

CANTON TOWNSHIP, Mich. – The family of a Canton Township man who died of a heart attack is suing two 911 dispatchers. Family members said they called 911 several times but could not get through because the dispatchers intentionally turned off the system.

UPDATE: Canton Township officials say dispatcher turned down phone volume

The attorney for Stephen Green, who later died of a heart attack, said caretakers tried calling 911 a total of 13 times, but couldn't get through.

Stephen Green's wife, Dorothy Green, was married to him for 25 years. He was a resident at Hartland Health Care Center.

Early in the morning of March 2, 2018, Stephen Green, 69, suffered a heart attack. The family's attorney said the doctor who reviewed the case believes Stephen Green would have survived if an ambulance had been sent on the first 911 call.

Investigators said two separate emergency runs were missed.

"This delay in answering the 911 calls cause an approximately 8-minute delay in dispatching of emergency medical services to a CPR in progress run and was the second occurrence of multiple 911 calls being missed within an hour and a half time span," the case report says.

When first responders were finally dispatched, they worked on Stephen Green for 30 minutes but couldn't revive him, authorities said.

After discovering the missed calls, a 911 operator told police that something was wrong with the dispatch counsel. The volume on two phones had been turned down, so they couldn't hear them ringing, dispatchers said.

You can watch Priya Mann's full story in the video posted above.

You can view a full statement from the township below.


About the Authors:

Priya joined WDIV-Local 4 in 2013 as a reporter and fill-in anchor. Education: B.A. in Communications/Post Grad in Advanced Journalism

Derick is the Lead Digital Editor for ClickOnDetroit and has been with Local 4 News since April 2013. Derick specializes in breaking news, crime and local sports.