Keith Thornton

Months after a Chicago emergency dispatcher garnered praise for his handling of a deadly attack on two officers, he’s now back in the spotlight with a warning that a Northwest Side police district is dangerously understaffed.

The dispatcher lauded for his heroics when Chicago police officer Ella French was shot and killed is sounding off on social media about what he calls a shortage of police officers. NBC 5’s Vi Nguyen reports.

OEMC dispatcher Keith Thornton is being praised on social media for his quick thinking—doing his best to guide Chicago police officers on what turned out to be a dangerous and tragic night. Vi Nguyen reports.

OEMC dispatcher Keith Thornton is being praised on social media for his quick thinking—doing his best to guide Chicago police officers on what turned out to be a dangerous and tragic night.

On Saturday night, Keith Thornton experienced what he said was “one of the hardest shifts of my entire public safety career.” The Chicago dispatcher was working as two officers were shot during a traffic stop. One of them, 29-year-old Ella French, was killed and the other remains in critical condition.