ShotSpotter: Gunshot detection program has mixed reviews in other cities

SHOT. DETAILS ON THE FDA'S

>> HEY, ALL RIGHT. WELCOME

BACK. HELLO, I'M DAN HAGGERTY.

>> AND THOUGH IT APPEARS THAT

ALL I DO IS TALK. I'M ACTUALLY

A PRETTY GOOD LISTENER. SO

PLEASE TELL ME WHAT'S ON YOUR

MIND. E-MAIL ME AT DAN AT WRAL

DOT COM TONIGHT. I WANT TO TALK

ABOUT SHOT SPOTTER. NOT WANT TO

ADMIT YOU. IT'S KIND OF HARD

FOR ME TO SEE THAT IT'S KIND OF

LIKE DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME.

INEVITABLY GOING TO COLLEGE

SPOT SHOT AT LEAST ONCE DURING

THIS REPORTS OF PLEASE JUST

BEAR WITH ME. LET'S START WITH

THIS HEADLINE. DURHAM LEADERS

ADVOCATE FOR GUNSHOT DETECTION

TECHNOLOGY. AND THAT IS WHAT

SHOTSPOTTER IS MORE

SPECIFICALLY, THOUGH, IS A

PRIVATE COMPANY THAT PUTS A

BUNCH OF MICROPHONES ALL OVER

A COMMUNITY AND THEN LISTENS

EVERY SECOND OF EVERY DAY AND

NIGHT WHEN IT RECOGNIZES

GUNSHOTS. THIS TECH

TRIANGULATE, THE GENERAL

LOCATION WHERE THOSE SHOTS CAME

FROM AND THEN GIVES THE DATA TO

POLICE AND EMS SO THEY CAN GET

THERE ASAP EVEN BEFORE PEOPLE

ARE CALLING 9-1-1. NOW, WHEN

PEOPLE HEAR ABOUT THIS

TECHNOLOGY TYPICALLY HAVE ONE

OF 3 REACTIONS. THEY EITHER

THINK THAT IT'S A GREAT IDEA.

YOU CAN HELP AREAS WITH A LOT

OF GUN VIOLENCE OR THEY THINK

IT'S A BAD IDEA THAT COULD LEAD

TO THINGS LIKE OVER-POLICING

OR THEY DON'T REALLY CARE AND

THEY FEEL LIKE IT DOESN'T

IMPACT THEM. AND TONIGHT I WANT

TO TALK TO ALL 3 STARTING WITH

THE PEOPLE WHO LIKE SHOT

SPOTTER. AFTER ALL, IT DOES

APPEAR TO BE WORKING IN SOME

COMMUNITIES IN CLEVELAND FOR

INSTANCE, POLICE SAY IT'S

HELPING TO REDUCE GUN VIOLENCE

SAYING OFFICERS ARE RECEIVING

MORE INFORMATION ABOUT GUNFIRE,

INCIDENTS FASTER AND MORE

ACCURATELY THAN EVER IN DENVER.

THEY JUST REOP THEIR CONTRACT

FOR MILLIONS OF DOLLARS AFTER A

MAJOR UPTICK IN ARRESTS SAYING

IN 2020, THE GUNSHOT DETECTION

SYSTEM WAS LINKED TO 99 A REST

AND RECOVER RECOVERY OF 81 GUNS

IN FRESNO IN 2018.

SHOT SPOTTER STATISTICS SHOWED

A NEARLY 30% DECREASE IN

SHOOTINGS. AND THIS WAS DURING

A TIME WHEN SHOOTINGS ARE ON

THE RISE IN NEARLY EVERY MAJOR

CITY ACROSS THE COUNTRY.

THOSE ARE THE BASIC SELLING

POINTS. FAST RESPONSE, TIME,

MORE REST OR REDUCTION IN CRIME

AND LIVES BEING SAVED. AND

BASED ON THAT RIGHT NOW, 123

U.S. CITIES ARE USING THIS

TECH. ACCORDING TO THE

COMPANY'S WEB SITE IN DURHAM,

MAY MAKE ONE. 24. IN MY MANY

YEARS COVERING CRIME IN YOUR

MANY YEARS WATCHING THE NEWS

COVER CRIME. WE KNOW THAT THERE

IS NO MAGIC BULLET TO STOPPING

BULLETS. THERE ARE LOTS OF

FACTORS THAT IMPACT CRIME

RATES, FOR INSTANCE, WHEN

FRESNO HIGHLIGHTED SHOT SPOTTER

FOR REDUCING GUN VIOLENCE IN

2018, IT WAS ONE OF ONLY 3

MAJOR CITIES IN THE COUNTRY

THAT SAW GUN CRIMES ACTUALLY

GO DOWN IN FRESNO, SAW THAT

DECREASE WHILE USING THIS

TECHNOLOGY, WHICH SEEMS

CONNECTED AND MEANINGFUL.

ALMOST EVERY OTHER MAJOR CITY

IN THE U.S. SAW A RISE IN GUN

CRIMES IN OF THOSE CITIES.

MORE THAN 80 OF THEM ALSO USE

SHOTSPOTTER NOW FOR ALL THE

VIEWERS OUT THERE WHO WRITE ME

AND SAY WE JUST WANT THE FACTS

WILL THERE IS AN EXAMPLE HOW

DIFFERENTLY FACTS CAN BE

REPORTED AND WHY IN THIS CASE,

SOME PEOPLE CAN ARGUE THAT THE

SHOT SPOTTER JUICE ISN'T WORTH

THE SQUEEZE, FOR INSTANCE, IN

CHICAGO, A CITY ABSOLUTELY

BRUTALIZED BY GUN VIOLENCE.

THE INSPECTOR GENERAL THERE

FOUND THAT IT RARELY LEAD TO

EVIDENCE OF GUN RELATED CRIMES.

OFTEN TIMES POLICE ARE SPENDING

THEIR NIGHTS RUNNING FROM

SHOOTING SCENE TO SHOOTING

SCENE WITHOUT DOING MUCH ELSE

OR MAKING ANY ARRESTS IN 2016.

CHARLOTTE ENDED ITS CONTRACT

WAS SHOT SPOTTER BECAUSE THE

CITY SAID SIMPLY WASN'T DOING

ENOUGH. POLICE SAID, QUOTE,

THE SYSTEM OPERATED AS

DESIGNED, HOWEVER, THE RETURN

ON INVESTMENT WAS NOT HIGH

ENOUGH TO JUSTIFY RENEW.

NOW HERE IN DURHAM, THE GROUP,

DURHAM, BEYOND POLICING,

WORRIES THAT THIS TECH LEAD

TO OVER-POLICING OF BLACK AND

BROWN NEIGHBORHOODS. AND WHEN

IT COMES TO THIS SPECIFIC

TOPIC, THE ACLU RAISES AN

INTERESTING POINT. YOU SEE MOST

GUNFIRE NEVER GETS REPORTED,

BUT THIS TECH CAN HEAR ALMOST

EVERY GUNSHOT THAT HAPPENS

OUTSIDE. SO THE AREAS WHERE

THE CENTER'S GET PUT IN PLACE

AS THEY PUT IT COULD DISTORT

GUNFIRE, STATISTICS AND CREATE

A CIRCULAR STATISTICAL

JUSTIFICATION FOR

OVER-POLICING. AND THAT'S

THAT'S A POLITICALLY LOADED

OPINION. A STUDY SPONSORED

BIDEN, DOJ WRITTEN ALMOST 25

YEARS AGO WHEN THE TECH WAS

FIRST DEVELOPED, DETERMINE THE

SAME THING SAYING IF THE CITY

HAS A LOT OF AN REPORTED

GUNFIRE AND SUDDENLY IT'S ALL

REPORTED BY THESE TECH, IT

COULD HAVE SIGNIFICANT

RAMIFICATIONS FOR FUTURE CRIME

ANALYSIS IN CRIME PREVENTION

ACTIVITIES. AND SO THAT TAKES

ME TO THE FINAL GROUP. THOSE OF

YOU WHO I DON'T REALLY CARE

ENOUGH, EITHER WAY TO HAVE AN

OPINION ON THIS. MAYBE GUN

VIOLENCE ISN'T SOMETHING THAT

YOU HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT.

SO LET'S BROADEN THE DISCUSSION

FOR YOU TO PRIVACY EARLIER THIS

MONTH, THE WASHINGTON POST

PUBLISHED DRONES, ROBOTS

LICENSE PLATE READERS. POLICE

GRAPPLE WITH COMMUNITY CONCERNS

AS THEY TURN TO TECH FOR THEIR

JOBS. NOW, LAW ENFORCEMENT IN

NORTH CAROLINA HAS USED ALL

THAT STUFF BEFORE AND MORE LIKE

FACIAL RECOGNITION AND TRACKING

CELL PHONES JUST LAST WEEK WE

REPORTED FAYETTEVILLE POLICE

ARE USING A WEB OF SECURITY

CAMERAS TO CATCH SUSPECTS IN A

BIKER GANG SHOOTING. THE VERY

FIRST SENTENCE OF THE STORY

SAYS FAYETTEVILLE POLICE, 7

STALLED A WEB, HAVE SECURITY

CAMERAS ACROSS THE TOWN THEY

SAY IS PROVIDING VITAL

INFORMATION THAT'S LEADING TO

THE ARREST OF CRIMINALS.

NOW FOR YEARS NOW, POLICE IN

NORTH CAROLINA HAVE BEEN

PARTNERING WITH RING TO GET

ACCESS TO YOUR PERSONAL

SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS. THEY CAN

GET THAT FOOTAGE DIRECTLY FROM

THE COMPANY WITH YOUR

PERMISSION OR WITH A WARRANT.

IF YOU SAY NO. SO YOU KNOW THAT

THEY'RE WATCHING AND WITH SPOT

SHOT OR SHOT SPOTTER, THEY'LL

BE LISTENING AND NOT ONLY TO

GUNSHOTS IN 2007 IN THE CASE OF

PEOPLE VERSUS JOHNSON, IT

PICKED UP A CONVERSATION THAT

WAS THEN USED TO CONVICT A MAN

IN OAKLAND AND RIGHT NOW IN

OUR STATE ON THE COAST IN

WILMINGTON, POLICE HAVE BEEN

USING SHOT SPOTTERS NEWEST

UPGRADE CALLED MISSIONS, SAYS

PROFILED LAST YEAR IN FORMS.

IT USES ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

TO ANTICIPATE CRIME CREATING

A RISK ASSESSMENT OF WHERE IT

BELIEVES CRIMES ARE MOST LIKELY

TO HAPPEN NEXT. YES, I KNOW

THAT IS THE EXACT SAME PREMISE

OF A SCI-FI THRILLER STARRING

TOM CRUISE. I GUESS IN THIS

CASE, MAYBE ART IS IMITATING

IN PRISON. IT'S A LOT TO

CONSIDER. I'M HOPING YOU

CONSIDER IT BECAUSE DURHAM IS

SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS. E-MAIL ME

AT DAN AT WRAL DOT COM. THIS

IS THE PART OF THE REPORT.

WHEN I STOP TALKING. I KNOW