TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Re: Need Help With a Telephone Mystery

Re: Need Help With a Telephone Mystery

John McHarry (jmcharry@comcast.net)
Tue, 24 Jan 2006 00:45:49 GMT

> [TELECOM Digest Editor's Note: There was an instance in Chicago
> several years ago where the Probation Department of the Cook County
> Court system printed up legal notices which were mailed out to all
> the probationers -- millions of notices -- with the wrong number on
> the form. Getting them (court officials) to even _listen_ to the
> problem, let alone correct their stupid notices took a real act of
> God, believe me. They just were not going to change anything
> about their system. Now if you know Chicago, almost everyone gets
> swept up in their system at least once; many folks more than once.
> The trouble was sort of serious; all probationers were expected to
> call that number (or at least the correct version of it) to do
> something or other. It finally took a lawyer (whether he himself was
> on probation or simply the counsel for someone else who was on
> probation is not known to me; it could have been either way) to go
> raise so much hell with them and get their damn forms reprinted with
> the correct number. I think the attorney had to offer to file suit
> against the court itself to prompt the correction of the form. PAT]

Isn't this a variation on the sweet old lady who got caught in something
like that, and Telecom Digest published the correct number and asked
readers to call asking for her? After we brought their switchboard to its
knees, they fixed their mailings, put an intercept on her number to filter
her calls, and cleared the situation. It could well be both happened.

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