CHICAGO — With less than two weeks before ShotSpotter could go dark, City Council members are urging Chicago Mayor Johnson to keep the gunfire detection software.
The last-ditch effort comes as ShotSpotter is set to turn off on Sunday, Sept. 22.
Ald. Peter Chico (10th Ward) said Monday that the city should not remove ShotSpotter.
“No reason whatsoever,” Chico added.
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Last February, Johnson, making good on a campaign promise, canceled the city’s contract with SoundThinking, the company behind the tech. Still, the mayor extended its use through last month’s Democratic National Convention.
Johnson’s decision to dump ShotSpotter angered some alders, and in a 34-14 vote, the City Council rebuked the mayor, endorsing an effort to overturn him. Holding firm, Johnson stated that the Council had no authority to overrule him.
At a Sept. 9 Public Safety Committee meeting, ShotSpotter supporters sounded off.
“We want this in our neighborhoods, and I think if we allow ourselves to go down this road of removing this technology, which technology is next?” asked 10th Ward Alderman Raymond Lopez. “Are we going to take out license plate readers next? Are we going to take out the cameras next? At what point are we going to throw up our hands and turn it over to the criminals and say, ‘You know what? The city’s yours.'”
Alders also heard from a ShotSpotter official and former police superintendent, Eddie Johnson, on Monday.
“It’s frustrating for me because I know 70 – at least 70 percent of gunshots being fired in the city go unreported and that’s troubling,” Johnson said. “The fact is, people don’t call police for whatever reason.”
ShotSpotter supporters argue the acoustic gunshot detection system helps police respond to shootings when no one calls 911, thus allowing officers or EMTs to render aid to victims quickly. But, according to testimony Monday, 30,000 ShotSpotter alerts led to 143 victims being found over the first eight months of the year; only seven did not have a corresponding 911 call.
“For a number of us, we feel like there’s still questions that need to be answered,” said Ald. Andre Vasquez (40th Ward).
Since the system came online in 2018, taxpayers have spent more than $53 million on the technology. Critics say ShotSpotter has done little to make Chicago safer, however.
A 2024 report released by Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx showed that ShotSpotter rarely led to prosecutions for gun crimes, while a 2021 Inspector General report found the system rarely led to evidence of gun-related crime. The IG also reported that the tech changed police behavior. Activists argue that the change led to over-policing of Black and brown communities.
“The number of calls that are received clock the system that we have many, many calls that are not emergency calls while we have – and we continue to hear this – that the residents would like to see efficiency in response times. ShotSpotter doesn’t do that,” said Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th Ward).
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Signs point to Johnson maintaining his position on ShotSpotter, however. On Monday, an official with SoundThinking said they’ve had no talks with the Johnson administration about another extension or renewal of ShotSpotter.