Americans! *waves*

[making_excuses]

So, I was watching a show that I shall not name so I don't spoil people, but the thing was that they stole a cellphone which they needed to call the police with, and they couldn't because it was password protected.

That just confused the heck out of me, because at least in Norway you can call 911 both when the phone is password protected or if it don't have a sim card. As long as the battery is charged you can contact the emergency services with a cell phone.

Am I just being pretentious and assuming my country does it so every country does? Or was it a big fail from the show, where they just throw logic out the window in favour of making it more exciting?

Comments

[agentcthulhu]

I think the following two excerpts will be of interest to you.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pocket_dialing
"Many mobile phones will allow dialing the emergency number even when the keypad is locked, which poses a particular problem if the number is easy to dial accidentally (e.g.: 999, 000). On some phones, while the keypad is locked or the phone is protected by a password, dialing the emergency number will be mapped to a soft key and shown on the display, generally requiring only two button presses to dial. This problem is often exacerbated by soft keys and "OK" or "Accept" buttons generally being located near each other physically. Ironically, phones with these characteristics may be significantly more prone to pocket dialing of emergency services when they are locked.

Accidental emergency calls are even more likely if the user has programmed the emergency number into the phone's contacts or speed dial.[7]"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency_telephone_number#Emergency_numbers_and_mobile_telephones
"In the United States, the FCC requires networks to route every mobile-phone and payphone[verification needed] 911 call to an emergency service call center, including phones that have never had service, or whose service has lapsed.[18][19] As a result, there are programs that provide donated used mobile phones to victims of domestic violence and others especially likely to need emergency services.

Mobile phones generate additional problems for emergency operators, as many phones will allow emergency numbers to be dialed even while the keypad is locked."

Edit:
I mean, there's no guarantee it is impossible to call 911 from a locked phone in the US, but I find the scenario you described to be unlikely to happen.

[making_excuses]

Thank you! That was what I assumed too.