IMPD officers begin responding to shots fired calls using gunshot detection technology

[chipbennett]

Baltimore has 10 sq miles covered by a detection system since 2018.

And what have the results been?

Any fewer shootings in that area?
Any fewer homicides in that area?
Any increase in prevented fatalities from shootings in that area?
Any increase in shooting case clearance in that area?

I was under the impression that homicides in general have trended up in Baltimore, but don't know any specifics.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

How do they quantify success? Response times decreased by XX% seems like an easy stat to look at, but does that give an accurate picture.

Seems like a decrease in "total time on call" (T-TOC, I just made that up) would be a good metric. The more time officers are in the area... no too much variation.

If anyone uses buzz words like "proprietary algorithms", the system will get a result that will be used to claim success. As the pointy-haired boss from Dilbert once said, "we're doing much better since we redefined success as a slowing of failure."

Does it get the good guys with guns to the scene of the bad guys with guns quicker and more accurately? I'd call that a success. Now measuring that and determining a cost benefit? Hhhhmmmmm. Higher arrest percentage? Now we're talking! If only "revolving door Ryan" would get voted out... seems like he wants to run for a different office.

I can pretty confidently say it's saved one life so far. No 911 call, shot and unresponsive victim found before bleeding out.

It's also been helpful in recovering physical evidence. "Shots fired" calls are often not very precise in location due to the caller not knowing exactly where the shots were fired from. 1st phase was not real time, officers searched an area 1.5 blocks from where shooting actually happened based on reports. Followup the next day found the shell casings in the correct alley.

"time to respond" is probably *a* metric, but liketly not the more important one.

 

[Frank_N_Stein]

Damned if they do, damned if they don't. And people want to **** around and cause false activations just for fun. I bet the neighborhoods where the sensors will be placed are too scary for most INGOers to drive through, let alone fire shots in.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

I would imagine cities will see a lot more vendors with new tech in the future. It all depends on how much value the new tech brings for the cost against how many live officers the city could hire for the same money. That is, if the city can hire live officers. Robocop is still a ways off.

There are at least 3 vendors currently.

 

[Cameramonkey]

Damned if they do, damned if they don't. And people want to **** around and cause false activations just for fun. I bet the neighborhoods where the sensors will be placed are too scary for most INGOers to drive through, let alone fire shots in.

Who said we WANTED to? I think we are just spitballing how it COULD be abused.

 

[Shadow01]

Looking at another use for sound monitoring…

the system picks up 2 people screaming at each other and the algorithm direct dispatches a car as a domestic. On arrival a lady is found battered. If they make an arrest does the lack of a 911 call record hinder any future court proceedings?

 

[KellyinAvon]

Damned if they do, damned if they don't. And people want to **** around and cause false activations just for fun. I bet the neighborhoods where the sensors will be placed are too scary for most INGOers to drive through, let alone fire shots in.

Too scary to drive through? I’m practicing risk management by not driving through these areas.

 

[jwamplerusa]

Next we'll have to make suppressors illegal because the gangs will use them to escape this!

Ohh, S***! You did NOT just say that!



There goes the hearing protection act...

 

[utl73]

It would be one thing if Metro actually had a hard time finding shooters, but they dont. Most of the people being shot or shooting are using the prosecutors office as a revolving door. Fix that clown show first with the money we have been throwing away for years before we buy more toys.

 

[actaeon277]

Next we'll have to make suppressors illegal because the gangs will use them to escape this!

If I remember right, suppressors changed the sound characteristics causing detection problems.
I would assume by now (I could be wrong though) that the detection parameters have been adjusted.

 

[actaeon277]

Damned if they do, damned if they don't. And people want to **** around and cause false activations just for fun. I bet the neighborhoods where the sensors will be placed are too scary for most INGOers to drive through, let alone fire shots in.

Maybe.
Or maybe some of us believe in flesh and blood officers.
And a little less believing in wonder gadgets.
Gadgets are fine, if they work.

 

[KLB]

Ohh, S***! You did NOT just say that!



There goes the hearing protection act...

That was already a talking point for the antis.

I remember this gem from Tom Dart, Cook County IL Sheriff

“Frequently the telephone calls that come in to law enforcement about problems that occur on streets come from neighbors and the like who have heard gunshots out there; it draws law enforcement to the area where the shots were fired from,” said Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart. “If there was none of that, it would decrease the ability for law enforcement to get to a location and quickly find out what happened and maybe the people who did it are still in the general area? Yeah, it would hurt.”

Illinois Law Enforcement Officials Mislead Public About Silencers

In a surprisingly balanced ABC 7 report about a bill proposing the legalization of silencers in Illinois, several Illinois law enforcement leaders show that they are either uninformed about the use o...

bearingarms.com

 

[FNparabellum]

Hey INGO LEOs: what say you about Shot Caller?

IMPD officers begin responding to shots fired calls using gunshot detection technology

INDIANAPOLIS — Starting this week IMPD officers are actively responding to shots fired calls using gunshot detection technology in parts of the city. IMPD says officers sitting in their squad…

fox59.com

It may not prevent or protect someone in the moment of a crime but it does help solve it and hopefully get the perp off the streets faster.

 

[KLB]

Here's an article about Chicago's

ShotSpotter Chicago: How police use high-tech equipment to fight crime

We take an inside look at how a Chicago police district uses high-tech equipment to try and fight crime.

abc7chicago.com

 

[bwframe]

It may not prevent or protect someone in the moment of a crime but it does help solve it and hopefully get the perp off the streets faster.

Wouldn't need expensive gadgets, if we just kept the perps off the street the first time we caught them.


.

 

[Gunmetalgray]

Publicly traded....
https://www.shotspotter.com/press-r...announces-closing-of-initial-public-offering/

I would have thought they would be doing better by now since it provides that feel good moment for the libs who are always crying 'we need to do something'.

 

[FNparabellum]

Wouldn't need expensive gadgets, if we just kept the preps off the street the first time we caught them.


.

Yep very true

 

[BehindBlueI's]

Publicly traded....
https://www.shotspotter.com/press-r...announces-closing-of-initial-public-offering/
View attachment 230205
I would have thought they would be doing better by now since it provides that feel good moment for the libs who are always crying 'we need to do something'.

Budgets are tight in many places, "defund the police", and they are increasingly facing more competition. While the name is becoming something of a generic, like Kleenex or Dumpster, for it's entire segment there are at least 3 major providers of the technology.

 

[actaeon277]

So, the question is not only... does it work... but, is it an effective use of the money?

Kinda hard to figure out, but, would the money be better spent on shot spotter, on officers, on training, on equipment, etc?

 

[BehindBlueI's]

So, the question is not only... does it work... but, is it an effective use of the money?

Kinda hard to figure out, but, would the money be better spent on shot spotter, on officers, on training, on equipment, etc?

Another question is would the money that's available for shot spotter tech be available for any of those other things.

Private and public grants are often for specific projects or goals and can't be used for other things, which can be frustrating but it's how reality works so you deal with it.