Houston Council Approves $3.5M Gunshot Detection Program

HOUSTON, TX — The Houston City Council approved a $3.5 million contract at its Wednesday meeting to provide gunshot detection technology for the Houston Police Department, though concerns about the program still exist in the public and among some council members.

The lone dissenter was Councilmember Letitia Plummer.

The contract with ShotSpotter, which lasts five years, comes after both the city and Harris County held a pilot program with the company beginning in May 2020. Harris County extended a contract to ShotSpotter in June as part of a multi-million dollar investment in public safety programs. The city's pilot program ended at the end of December.

The technology utilizes acoustic sensors to detect and locate gunfire, though it has come under scrutiny in other communities it has served for false positives, disproportionally affecting communities of color and its cost.

Councilmember Mike Knox expressed doubts about the program, specifically with its cost-effectiveness and the statistics presented by the HPD proposal, claiming they don't show a correlation in reducing crime.

"What we’re doing is voting on another pilot program," Knox said. "I want to challenge our police department to do an actual cost-benefit analysis over the next five years.

"I’m going to hold my nose and vote in favor of this."

Several community members spoke on the proposal during the public comments portion of the meeting with a majority of them opposing the program. One person criticized the program for sending law enforcement officers to suspected incidents of shots fired instead of medical personnel. Others accused ShotSpotter of being ineffective in reducing gun violence.

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner spoke in favor of the program, expressing that it wasn't going to solve crime in the city, but that it was a useful tool for HPD. Councilmember Amy Peck said that it was an important tool to help undermanned law enforcement.

"I’ve been hearing from constituents for months and months that want this technology," Peck said. "Until we have enough police officers, we have to bridge the gap with technology."