NYC enlists the help of Shot Spotter

whynot_31

I haven't seen any reports that the 77th Pct (where I reside) will receive shot spotter, but NYC announced today that it is moving ahead with implementing the program.


photo: Nyc.gov

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2015/03/16/nypd-roles-out-shot-spotter-pilot-program-in-areas-of-bronx-brooklyn/

http://www.newsday.com/news/new-york/william-bratton-nypd-commissioner-to-announce-expansion-of-gunfire-detection-system-officials-say-1.10063697

http://7online.com/news/nypd-expands-gunfire-detection-system-in-bronx-brooklyn/559708/

It seems that the areas of NYC that experience the most gun fire are being targeted.

ehgee

whynot_31

Not those shots, @ehgee

If we were looking for those, we would put them on the Lower East Side or around MSG.

dl

Or anywhere in Midtown, really. (Ugh, St. Patrick's Day.) 

whynot_31

It is a mess outside.

whynot_31

I actually had not thought much about the concerns civil libertarians would have until Bratton responded to them:

http://nypost.com/2015/03/24/bratton-opponents-of-nypd-gun-tracking-tech-should-get-a-life/

However, even after thinking about their concerns, I am still pro-shot spotter.

mcpoet

“We’re not out there eavesdropping; that’s not what the system does, that’s not what it’s designed to do, that’s not what it’s capable of. So, get a life and move on to some other issue,” he said.

He went on to add, "like seriously, OMG, ya'll haters need to stop hating. YOLO!"

I question the wisdom of responding to legitimate concerns like a petulant 14 year old, but I actually have no problem with implementing the technology.  It's always bothered me that there are far more shots fired than are actually documented.  My question is which specific precincts will this be implemented.  I've seen references to specific neighborhoods (Brownsville), but I haven't been able to track down any more specific information (i.e. will this be implemented in the 71s, 77th, etc.).  Has anyone been able to track down this information?

whynot_31

I am pretty confident that if it was going to be implemented in the 77th, I would have heard.

Here's some really good reading on the topic: http://www.cmu.edu/hss/ehpp/documents/2014-City-Surveillance-Policy.pdf

mcpoet

Yeah, it's probably more likely in the 71st, as we tend to get more gunshots down south of the Parkway these days than there are north of it.  As others have pointed out, the side streets south of the Parkway between Washington and Nostrand tend to see a lot of gunfire, especially once the weather warms up.  The one upside to winter is that shootings tend to go way down.

whynot_31

I'd bet the 75th Pct will get them.

Not only does it have a lot of gunshots, it has a lot of public housing.

I can't see NYCHA denying the NYPD permission to put microphones on their buildings.

whynot_31

The South Bronx has Shot Spotter, and it helped make this recent arrest:

http://www.nypdnews.com/2015/07/shotspotter-alert-leads-to-arrest-gun.html?m=1

pragmaticguy

This has been used in areas of Long Island for a few years now and it's quite helpful. Even if the perps are gone by the time the cops arrive many times they find shell casings so their sensors seem to be pretty accurate. Certainly an addition equal to the police cameras that are going up all over.

whynot_31

There are certainly some sections of Long Island that could benefit from this service (Wyandanch!).

The costs are likely passed on to larger (much better off) Suffolk County.

...just like the costs for putting this service in NYC low income areas are passed on to the larger NYC.

However, I do wonder if cities without large tax bases will be able to afford the service.

How will the almost exclusively poor, crime ridden cities of Newark and Detroit ever find the $ to pay for Shot Spotter?

pragmaticguy

I don't think Newark would have a problem if they wanted it. Lots of commercial businesses paying taxes and let's not forget the airport. Detroit can't pay for cops so any other service would be unaffordable. But maybe parts of Chicago could use it if they don't have it already.

whynot_31

Newark actually seems to be using the technology already:
http://www.wnyc.org/story/311533-gunshot-detection-sensors-newark-result-17-arrests-over-three-years/

A Newark high school seems to be the first in the nation to have a system for its campus.
http://www.shotspotter.com/news/article/newark-adds-shotspotter-gunfire-detection-system-to-high-school-campus

whynot_31

Meanwhile, back in Brooklyn:

"The police responded to a report of gunfire shortly after 8 p.m. near 807 Saratoga Avenue, a four-story residential building in the Brownsville neighborhood, and arrived to find three men with gunshot wounds in front of the building."

"The gunfire was reported to the Police Department by ShotSpotter, a detection system first installed in seven precincts in the Bronx and 10 in Brooklyn in March as part of a pilot program."

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/14/nyregion/man-killed-in-a-shooting-in-brooklyn.html