Groups say gunshot detection systems unreliable, seek review
DON BABWIN and SARA BURNETT, Associated Press
May 3, 2021
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1of9FILE - In this Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017 file photo, members of the Chicago Police Department work with new predictive and tracking ShotSpotter technologies in a strategic decision support center at the Chicago Police Department 11th district headquarters in Chicago. In a Monday, May 3, 2021 court filing, community groups argue the gunshot detection system routinely reports gunshots where there are none, sending officers into predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods for “unnecessary and hostile” encounters. (Erin Hooley/Chicago Tribune via AP)Erin Hooley/APShow MoreShow Less
Groups voice concerns about Chicago s ShotSpotter gunshot detection system
By Don Babwin and Sara Burnett
Published
Groups voice concerns about ShotSpotter gunshot detection system
The gunshot detection system that set in motion the recent fatal police shooting of a 13-year-old boy in Chicago routinely reports gunshots where there are none, community groups argued in a court filing Monday.
CHICAGO - The gunshot detection system that set in motion the recent fatal police shooting of a 13-year-old boy in Chicago routinely reports gunshots where there are none, sending officers into predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods for unnecessary and hostile encounters, community groups argued in a court filing Monday.
“These deployments create an extremely dangerous situation for residents, prompting unnecessary and hostile police encounters, and creating the conditions for abusive police tactics that have plagued Chicago for decades,” the groups wrote.
ShotSpotter, a California based company that produces the gunshot detection system, has contracts with over 100 police departments nationwide. In Chicago, it sent an average of 71.4 alerts to officers each day during the period studied, according to the court filing. That included the March 29 alert that led to the fatal shooting of 13-year-old Adam Toledo by a Chicago officer.
The Chicago Police Department and other agencies have long praised the system, saying it puts officers on the scene of shootings far faster than if they wait for someone to call 911 to report gunfire. In Chicago, its use was expanded in response to increases in violent crime; police say crime rates not residents’ race determine where the technology is deployed.
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US groups say gunshot detection systems unreliable, seek review
Surrendered firearms sit on a table during a gun buyback event on Dec 17, 2016 in San Francisco, California. (Photo: AFP/Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
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CHICAGO: The gunshot detection system that set in motion the recent fatal police shooting of a 13-year-old boy in Chicago routinely reports gunshots where there are none, sending officers into predominantly black and Latino neighbourhoods for “unnecessary and hostile” encounters, community groups argued in a court filing on Monday (May 3).
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