MADISON, Wis. -- The head of the Dane County Public Safety Communications Center when a 911 call from a slaying victim was mishandled resigned Friday.

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Public Safety Communications Center Director Joe Norwick will step down on Friday, Sept. 19, according to a news release from Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk's office.

"I thank Director Norwick for his service and the enhancements he embarked upon as director of the Public Safety Communications Center," Falk said.

In the news release, Falk praised Norwick for "initiating a variety of technology and infrastructure upgrades in the 911 Center and for coordinating implementation of a new $30-million, state-of-the-art emergency radio system."

"He had been a deputy sheriff for Dane County citizens for 19 years and then retired and came out of retirement to be the head of out 911 system so I think its just a high stress job and he thought he'd go back to retirement and go to his cottage up north," said Falk.

"I think unfortunately or fortunately, you need to be able to deal with the media in that position, and he didn't have a lot of media skills," said Paul Rusk, Public Protection & Judiciary Committee chair.

However, in recent months, Norwick and Falk received criticism after it came to light that a call from a slain University of Wisconsin-Madison student's cell phone was apparently mishandled last spring.

County officials have said a dispatcher failed to return a call from Brittany Zimmermann's phone around the time that she was killed on April 2. The victim's family had alleged that the 911 dispatcher hung up on a call from Zimmermann and then failed to call the number back. No police officers were dispatched.

Zimmermann was found dead in her West Doty Street apartment. No suspects have been arrested in connection with her death.

Norwick originally said that the call from Zimmerman's cell phone to 911 was handled properly -- later, county officials said the call was not handled properly, WISC-TV reported.

Falk said she was informed earlier this week that Norwick planned to step down. She said that Norwich did not say that the Zimmermann case was the reason for his resignation, WISC-TV reported.

This summer, Zimmermann's parents dropped a lawsuit against Dane County and a 911 dispatcher regarding the alleged incident.

Falk also announced that she had named Kathy Krusiec as interim director. She said that Krusiec doesn't seek the position permanently and officials will conduct a search for Norwick's replacement.

"We look forward to working with whomever is appointed to lead the 911 Center, just as we have worked with Joe Norwick in the past," said Joel DeSpain of the Madison Police Department.

Norwick started as the 911 director in July 2007, according to the press release. Norwick had been the director of the 911 center for just over a year -- before that, he spent 30 years with the Dane County Sheriff's Department.