NYPD Gunshot Detection Equipment Coming To Washington Heights

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — The NYPD plans to expand its ShotSpotter program — which can detect gunshots and alert officers in real time — to Washington Heigths by the end of the summer, NYPD officials told reporters last week.

The ShotSpotter program, which consists of installing audio sensors on neighborhood rooftops and street poles, will help officers in the 33rd precinct better respond to reports of shots fired, NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Information Technology Jessica Tisch told reporters Thursday.

"ShotSpotter has been an incredible tool for the NYPD," Tisch said. "It's contributed to faster response times to 911 calls or to incidents of shots fired. We've taken a lot of firearms off the street because of it."

Only 16 percent of gunshots in the city result in a 911 call being made, Tisch told reporters.

The ShotSpotter audio sensors can identify the distinct sound of a gunshot and send nearby officers an alert in real-time, Tisch said. Officers can then listen to a recording of the gunshots on their phones and even learn information such as the specific address where the shooting took place.

The technology — which currently covers 54 square miles of the city — has aided officers in making 61 arrests, Tisch said. With the expansion of ShotSpotter to Washington Heights's 33rd precinct and Fort Greene, Brooklyn's 88th precinct the program will span 60 square miles by the end of the summer. Mayor Bill de Blasio has committed funding to expand the program by nine additional square miles by the end of the calendar year, Tisch told reporters.

So far in 2017 there have been 1,740 ShotSpotter activations, Tisch said. The rate of Shotspotter activations is up compared to 2016, when SpotSpotter was activated a total of 2,399 times.

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