BEND, OR -- A Central Oregon police department is the first in the state to use "Live 911," a new technological tool. "Live 911 is a partnership with Deschutes County 911 and Bend Police Department," says Lt. Brian Beekman, "It’s a software product that can stream the audio of a 911 call, real-time, directly to the first responder in their vehicle."

He tells KBND News it allows officers to respond to nearby incidents even before getting dispatched, "Not all calls, but some calls, seconds really do matter. And if we can shave down our response time from let’s say five or six minutes, down to a minute or two, that changes everything on the call and helps us resolve it more safely."

Officers don't hear every call coming into the dispatch center, only those in close proximity to their patrol car, "The first responder - in this case, Bend Police officers will set up a radius around their car. It’s off the GPS of their car. Let’s say it’s a mile radius. So, as they’re patrolling the city, within a mile of their car, if a 911 call comes in, that audio will be streamed, real time, right to that officer."

Beekman credits Live 911 for the swift arrest of an assault suspect after a fight in downtown Bend, last month. And, he says, it helped save a man involved in a January domestic dispute, "Unfortunately, he was in mental crisis. He decided to try to harm himself. He decided to try to take his life. If someone didn’t intervene within seconds, his life would’ve been taken, based on his actions. That officer arrived on scene within two minutes of the call being made to 911, provided medical care to that person. That person is alive today."

Bend PD and Deschutes County 911 tested Live 911 over the past year and now plan to continue it for the long-term. "Our City Council, right now, has a public safety goal around using pieces of technology to help the first responders, to help us resolve calls in a more efficient way, use our staff more efficiently," says Beekman, "And that’s what we’re doing here with this tool."