‘BBQ Becky’ Bill Proposes Misdemeanor To Stop ‘Frivolous' 911 Calls

Drastic times call for drastic measures, no matter how absurd the situation may be. Now, state Rep. Lakeshia Myers, D-Milwaukee is taking the law into her own hands.

When a Wisconsin woman was upset that KFC got her sandwich order wrong, she called 911, tying up the line and preventing assistance for real, life-threatening emergencies.

Now Myers is proposing to outlaw such “frivolous” emergency calls by introducing a bill that says anyone who summons officers “‘to a location for a reason other than suspected criminal activity’ should be charged with a misdemeanor,” as mentioned on NBC News.

Nicknamed “BBQ Becky” after an Oakland, California, woman who called the police on black men for grilling in a park, Myers hopes that it will “reinforce to the public that we take public safety and the safety of our residents seriously,” she states on her Twitter account.

After hearing about Rep. Janelle Bynum, a black lawmaker from Oregon, who also had the police called on her while out campaigning in her district, Myers said that she was inspired to introduce the bill as a way to deter and prevent similar incidents from occurring.

"This is the type of absurdity that this bill aims to combat," Myers said of such incidents. "There must be a penalty for people who misuse police services. There has to be a degree of responsibility when you contact the police; there needs to be a valid reason. Doing so flippantly can cause undue harm, danger and stress to the individuals involved."

Myers said she hopes her bill will put an end to "frivolous calls to law enforcement."

"Public safety officers are a resource that we must use wisely; when officers are frivolously contacted, this diverts time and resources that could be used to solve and deter actual crime," she said. "We must ensure that individuals who utilize 9-1-1 and call the police are doing so for actual emergencies."

Back in August 2019, the Oregon House voted 57-1, to allow victims to sue a person who calls the police on them when there is no crime committed. “The victims can file a small claims lawsuit up to $250,” according to the Seattle Times.