Gunshot System Has Mixed Results

An article in the Wall Street Journal outlines the how Oakland (Calif.) uses a gunshot detection system to help fight crime. But the story says Oakland spent $388,000 to set up 84 sound receivers and associated equipment from ShotSpotter around the city that would pinpoint the location of a gunfire. But, “In its first year, the system detected nearly 3,000 gunshots, overwhelming city dispatchers,” the article states. But Oakland hasn’t dedicated enough resources to respond to the ShotSpotter system alerts, the story says. What the article didn’t explain is that Oakland dispatchers routinely blind-broadcast ShotSpotter calls on the radio during busy periods, sometimes hours old and with only a general location. Read the entire story here.