Agenda Item
S10 25-0113 Subject: OPD ShotSpotter Annual Report
From: Oakland Police Department
Recommendation: Adopt A Resolution Accepting The Annual Report For The City's Gunshot Location Detection System And Making A Determination Regarding Whether The City Should Continue To Use This Technology
Like Council's earlier acceptance of the roadmap laid out by the Ceasefire Audit Report and its faithful implementation jointly by OPD, the Mayor's office and DVP, please continue funding the Shotspotter gunshot detection system. It's a key tool in identifying the location of gunshots particularly in neighborhoods where residents tend to be reluctant to contact OPD. This data adds to the info compiled for the weekly meetings that target resources to Oakland's most vulnerable residents.
Bill Joyce
Member, FIAEB Public Safety Committee
In Brian Hofer's report, he mentions civil liberties 6 times. One of the most important civil liberties is the right to live which wasn't among the 6 he mentioned. With a delay in OPD's 911 system, we need ShotSpotter to help officers identify potential shooting victims and evidence. Even when the 911 system gets up to par, many people don't call 911 or the police when they hear gunfire because they're not sure where it's coming from, or because they're afraid of retaliation. If the alternative to ShotSpotter is to rely on 911 calls to identify gunshots or on-viewing by officers, this sets us up to have less intelligence and a slower response. There are currently not enough officers to respond to 911 calls on time. How can ShotSpotter lead to over-policing when there's not enough police to respond to 911 calls? The fact that more than 95% of the time shots are fired, no one calls 911, and not renewing the contract means OPD has little help with identifying when and where shots are fired. Nearly 400 lives were saved due to this technology when no one called 911 (2020-2023). Who will aid victims in the middle of the night if no one calls in? In incidents where lives may hang in the balance and every second counts, the ShotSpotter gunshot detection system alerts police to virtually all gunfire in an area within 60 seconds. Our communities deserve consistent, equitable policing and ongoing efforts to address gunfire. I urge you to renew the ShotSpotter contract. Thank you
While Brian Hofer's report is very compelling, I would like to express support for extending the ShotSpotter contract.
On the other hand, we really need to address the backlog in the OPD Crime Lab.
I hope that someone has the time to figure out how to balance the two approaches.