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The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

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Police report 911 concern

The Madison Police Department filed a complaint with the Dane County 911 Center Tuesday following a March 7 incident in which a Madison man was found dead in a truck.

An incident report released March 7 shows Farrell Kurlish, 32, was found dead in a truck on Cumberland Lane on the city’s near east side.

MPD investigators said Kurlish’s cause of death was accidental carbon monoxide poisoning, the report added. Apparently the car had a “faulty” exhaust system and there was no evidence of foul play.

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After a more timely investigation, it was discovered a call was placed to a non-emergency line by a woman living on Cumberland regarding Kurlish’s idle truck, according to Josh Wescott, spokesperson for Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk.

A little before 10 a.m., the woman who called the non-emergency line asked the dispatcher if it is illegal for a truck to idle on the street for a half hour, Wescott said. The dispatcher said it was not illegal.

“There was no expression of a problem with the vehicle. We don’t think she knew what was going on. ‘Well, what’s this town coming to,’ she said and hangs up. She never indicated a person was in the car or that she even checked,” Wescott said.

Police were immediately dispatched to the scene when a called placed around 5:30 p.m. came in on the 911 Center emergency line reporting a man passed out in a vehicle, Wescott said.

The police canvassed the neighborhood where someone told them they think someone placed a call about the truck earlier that day.

MPD also identified Kurlish as a man they took to a hotel after the police responded to a call early March 7 reporting a domestic disturbance, Wescott said.

The call was initially disconnected, but the 911 dispatcher called back to locate the call and dispatch police.

According to Lt. John Radovan of the MPD, sometimes when police respond to domestic disputes, there is no probable cause for police to arrest.

In this case, police suggest one member of the party stay at a hotel for the night. MPD does not have the authority to make someone leave, Radovan added.

However, although police were dispatched after the emergency call was placed, MPD filed a complaint to the 911 Center to investigate the case further, Wescott said.

Regarding accusations this incident parallels the November homicide in Lake Edge Park, which was also reported on a non-emergency line, Wescott said the incidents had two “totally different contexts of calls.”

Unlike the noise complaint calls placed to the non-emergency line during the Lake Edge Park incident, there was no indication of an emergency during the March 7 call placed early that morning, Wescott said.

Tracy Krausman, an on-duty supervisor for the 911 Center, said because the incident is being investigated, she cannot comment on the matter.

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