Phila. officials eye gunshot-detection program

A gunshot-detection program that Camden police credit for a significant decrease in shootings has drawn the interest of Philadelphia officials, who say they would like to set aside money in next year's budget for the service.

The ShotSpotter program - a network of microphones that detect sounds resembling gunfire, triangulate their location, and alert police - has been in use in Camden since 2011. Several members of Philadelphia City Council went to Camden on Monday for a demonstration of the system. President Darrell L. Clarke said Council members had also looked at similar programs in New York City and Chicago.

The system "enhances the ability for police to respond in real time," Clarke said, adding that local lawmakers hope to "put some dollars aside" for the program as they work out the 2016 budget.

Clarke said he was interested in launching a pilot program in North Philadelphia's 22d District, which has served as a testing ground for policing initiatives such as body cameras and foot patrols.

Camden police say ShotSpotter has cut down on gunfire in a city plagued by it. An analysis released last year by SST, Inc., the company that produces the technology, compared gun incidents in Camden in the first half of 2013 and the first half of 2014, and concluded that such incidents decreased by 48.5 percent.

In a dark room whose walls were lined with video screens, Police Department employees monitored various feeds and showed Council members how ShotSpotter's microphones pick up the sounds of gunfire.

Assistant Chief Orlando Cuevas said the system sends alerts to police only when gunshots are detected, and is integrated with the city's "136 Eyes in the Sky" security cameras so officers can track fleeing shooting suspects.

The program costs about $50,000 per square mile per year, he said, with microphones stationed in "hot spots" around the city.

Philadelphia police have indicated they are open to adopting ShotSpotter. At a police budget hearing Wednesday, Deputy Commissioner Richard Ross told Council that the department was "optimistic" about the technology. Commissioner Charles H. Ramsey said a similar system in Washington allowed police to make arrests on the street that would not have taken place otherwise.

Cuevas said Camden police are careful about not revealing the exact location of the microphones, to prevent tampering. But, he said, their presence serves as a deterrent.

"We want everyone to know," he said. "It adds a sense of public safety."

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