By Aaron Gould Sheinin
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ATLANTA, Ga. — Recordings of 911 calls where the caller dies would be barred from public release under legislation approved in the state House on Tuesday.
House Bill 449, by Rep. Micah Gravely, R-Douglasville, was spurred by the death in 2009 of a woman in Douglas County who was swept from the road by flood waters. The woman, Gravely said, was on the phone with a 911 dispatcher for 21 minutes before passing away. A news media organization later requested the audio of the call.
Gravely’s bill would limit release of the calls to investigators, the family of the person who died or any party to a lawsuit involving the call.
The bill passed 163-3.