False alarm 911 calls could cost you in Eastpointe with new proposal

EASTPOINTE, Mich. (FOX 2) - In Eastpointe, if you call 911 for the wrong reason, you might have to pay up as the city is looking to cut down on false alarms.

"You're tying up an entire police department or a fire department for some stupid act that you committed," said George Rouhib. "This ordinance is geared toward drag racing, causing property damage, calling in a bomb threat, making threats on social media."

Rouhib is the Eastpointe director of public safety who supports a proposed ordinance that would make residents pay if they make a phony bomb threat, on social media, and more.

"Our job is not to generate revenue as a police department," Rouhib said. "Our job is to hold people accountable for their actions."

Eastpoint gets about 100 runs per day for fire and police, which is a lot for a city of 34,000 people in a five-mile area.

FOX 2: "Do you think this will deter people from calling the police when there might be something?"

"We encourage people to call the police," Rouhib said. "Someone said something, 'What if I have a medical condition?' It's got nothing to do with it. Or, 'What if I witness a crime?', or 'What if I am a victim of domestic violence?' (It) has nothing to do with that."

But if someone calls in - with a frivolous complaint- from the same location, three times within the same quarter calendar year, that caller would be fined.

"It could be $200, $300, $400 dollars," he said.

The Eastpointe City Council is set to discuss, and likely vote, on the proposed ordinance at Tuesday night's council meeting.