TPD Using New Technology to Fight Gun Crime

Toledo, OH (July 2, 2019): The Toledo Police Department is now using new technology, called ShotSpotter, to detect and locate gunshots within a four-mile section of North Toledo. ShotSpotter sends alerts to police in real-time after detecting and triangulating gunshots. The system went “live” on Tuesday, June 25th. During the first week of use, officers responded to 14 shooting incidents, of which 11 would have otherwise gone undetected if not for ShotSpotter.

In addition to increasing the detection of gunfire incidents, the technology has already shown to improve response times and assist officers in locating evidence at shooting scenes. Following a ShotSpotter alert, nearby residents will be notified of the incident by a TPD door-hanger requesting Crime Stoppers tips. The newly-formed Gun Crime Intelligence Task Force will focus on analyzing evidence and following up on ShotSpotter leads. The task force is comprised of one sergeant, four detectives, and a criminal analyst.

In September 2018, TPD received a grant award of $492,553 from the Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance, Technology Innovation for Public Safety. The grant will fund ShotSpotter for one year and a crime analyst for two years. The United States Attorney, Northern District of Ohio, Justin Herdman, United States Marshals Service Northern District of Ohio, ATF Toledo, and FBI Cleveland Division, Toledo RA all contributed to TPD receiving the grant award. While the exact location of the ShotSpotter coverage area is not being released due to investigative and safety purposes, the location was chosen based on historical shooting incident data.

All community members are urged to call 9-1-1 and notify police of crimes in progress. ShotSpotter does not replace 9-1-1 calls. Anyone with information on shooting incidents, both fatal and non-fatal, should call Crime Stoppers at 419-255-1111 – you can remain anonymous and may be eligible for a reward.

About ShotSpotter:

How ShotSpotter works video - https://www.youtube.com/embed/JJSNQoIvvkY?autoplay=1&rel=0

ShotSpotter FAQ - https://www.shotspotter.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/FAQ-June-2019_v2.pdf