DEPARTMENT: Police Department
DEPARTMENT HEAD: William P. McManus, Chief of Police
COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: City Wide
SUBJECT:
ShotSpotter Pilot Program Update
SUMMARY:
On April 29, 2016, the San Antonio Police Department launched the one year ShotSpotter Pilot Program. As part of the pilot program, ShotSpotter Inc. provides subscription based access to the ShotSpotter Flex Gunfire Location, Alert and Analysis Service. The service includes a combined four square mile acoustic surveillance system that can detect and locate gunfire throughout the two coverage areas located in the East and West sides of San Antonio. The service features real-time location of gunfire and audio clips.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
Results to Date
The following is a summary of the number of activations that have been documented through October 31, 2016:
|
|
ShostSpotter |
Citizen Only |
ShotSpotter/Citizen |
|
East |
54 |
41 |
97 |
|
West |
105 |
22 |
167 |
|
TOTAL |
159 |
63 |
264 |
A total of 63 activations within the project zones have been reported by citizens only with no ShotSpotter notification. This can be attributed to technology limitations, which is unable to accurately detect shots fired within structures or vehicles, as well as sensor placement issues. The majority of issues related to sensor placement appear to have been resolved within the first two months of the program with the placement of additional sensors.
In addition, a total of 6 firearms have been recovered, 63 pieces of evidence collected as a result of activations. 6 gun-related arrests have been made within the coverage areas. The table below provides additional detail regarding those arrests:
|
Criminal Charge |
Citizen Calls |
ShotSpotter Calls |
Case No. |
|
Deadly Conduct |
5 |
1 |
SAPD16095861 |
|
Felon in Poss. (Firearm) |
2 |
1 |
SAPD16169345 |
|
Murder |
3 |
0 |
SAPD16110650 |
|
Agg. Assault |
9 |
0 |
SAPD16168541 |
|
Agg. Robbery |
3 |
0 |
SAPD16105262 |
|
Deadly Conduct |
3 |
0 |
SAPD16105262 |
SAPD Response
ShotSpotter activations are categorized as Code 1 calls with officers dispatched to the identified location. Officers are instructed to take the following actions when responding to each activation:
• Search area to identify potential suspects and victims
• Identify and ensure collection of evidence
• Canvass witnesses in the immediate area to obtain relevant information
• Leave door hangers with program information at homes and businesses in the area
• Write an incident report
Evidence collected primarily consists of shell casings. All shell casings are submitted to the Department of Public Safety for documentation and entry into the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN).
System Effectiveness
The SAPD continues to collect data to measure the effectiveness of the ShotSpotter technology and has created a specific problem code to identify activations and have instructed staff to complete a report for each incident. Initial data review suggests a possible improvement in notification time which may, in some instances, result in a more timely response. A majority of activations have not been linked to violent crime incidents with an identified victim.
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff will continue to collect data and will prepare a report at the conclusion of the pilot program to determine effectiveness of the technology and the results achieved.