A teenage boy died and another was injured in a shooting in Sacramento Tuesday evening and while police are looking into the incident, there are tools like ShotSpotter that may assist in the investigation.
ShotShotter technology has been utilized since 2015 and it aims at helping Sacramento police investigate and identify more cases involving guns like the above incident. So, what exactly is Shotspotter and how does it work?
The technology uses acoustic sensors to identify location of gunfire, and it recognizes and records gunfire within a geographical area relaying the findings back to their communications center, according to the Sacramento Police Department.
Here are the steps:
- When a gun is fired a distinct sound is detected.
- Then sensors are triggered in the coverage area.
- ShotSpotter Software Review Center analyzes the data pinpointing a location up to 25 feet.
- Then officers receive information in the field and dispatchers work to coordinate responding officers to the software.
The original trial run started in the north Del Paso Heights area and it has extended to the south Sacramento area.
Linda Matthew, Public Information Officer with the Sacramento Police Department, says they do not give out the specific addresses of the sensors, but these neighborhoods were chosen for a reason.
"It's usually based on where we would have the most calls for service, and how we deploy our officers," she said.
Matthew also says they're hoping for more and they are working with the sheriff's department, who doesn't currently use the technology.
