Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski has named Lisa Burnette as director of the Salt Lake City 911 Bureau.
Burnette has been the agency’s interim director since Jan. 3, when the previous leader, Scott Freitag, was pulled over for drunken driving. He was fired the next day.
“Lisa has proven to be a highly effective leader and administrator as interim director of SLC911,” Biskupski said in a letter to the City Council, which must confirm the appointment for it to take effect. “Under her leadership, the department has continued to provide the highest-degree of professional and exceptional life-saving services to residents.”
Burnette has been with the bureau since 1992, when she started work as a dispatcher. During her years at the agency in various capacities she helped establish the SLC911 Training Academy and has contributed to improved efficiency and customer service, the mayor’s office said in a press release.
(Courtesy Layton City) Scott Freitag, Layton City Council member and director of Salt Lake City's emergency dispatch center.
Freitag was director of the bureau from 2013 until his termination in January, when he was stopped by Centerville police for erratic driving. After failing a sobriety test and discovery of an open alcoholic beverage in the vehicle, he registered with a 0.214 blood alcohol level.
In March, Freitag pleaded guilty to class B misdemeanor DUI. He was sentenced to three days in jail after Davis County Justice Judge John Carl Ynchausti suspended the remainder of a six-month jail term.
Freitag, who previously served 16 years as communications director for the Salt Lake City Fire Department, is a three-term Layton city councilman. His term expires in 2019.
