ShotSpotter support highest in Black, Hispanic Chicago wards mayor claims it hurts

Where is support strongest for the gunshot detection system Chicago’s mayor wants to dump? In the Black and Hispanic wards where it is most needed and has saved lives.

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson’s campaign pledge to end the ShotSpotter gunshot detection system is clearly opposed by city aldermen, but there is also pushback from another source: the data.

Analysis of city data shows the aldermanic wards reporting the most gunshots are the ones fighting hardest to keep ShotSpotter. Johnson’s support is mainly from wards where the system is not as critical to saving lives.

The system detected over 200,000 shots fired in the 13 months ending in August. Wards where aldermen supported the system averaged 4,358 shots compared to 2,682 in opponents’ wards. Six of the system’s champions logged at least 10,000 shots in their wards. Six of the wards where aldermen wanted the system disconnected had no shots detected.

The Chicago City Council voted 33-14 Sept. 18 to wrest control of the ShotSpotter contract from Johnson and give it to the city’s police superintendent, who favors the system for detecting gunshots and immediately dispatching emergency crews. It marked the second time in four months that Chicago alderman have voted to limit the mayor’s control of the ShotSpotter program since Johnson vowed to end the contract citywide.

Johnson has painted the gunshot detection system as leading to the overpolicing of minority communities. He promised to veto the City Council vote,

The data also shows aldermen in 62% of mostly Hispanic wards and 75% of mostly Black wards which reported at least one round fired since July 2023 supported keeping the ShotSpotter system.

Overall, 70% of rounds detected by ShotSpotter were fired in mostly Black wards during the past year, compared to 24% in mostly Hispanic wards and 6% in mostly White wards.

Johnson said the City Council’s effort to give authority over the ShotSpotter contract to Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling was an illegal overreach of a legislative body over an executive branch.

Johnson initially pledged to end the ShotSpotter contract while campaigning. He forged a last-minute deal in February to keep the system for nine more months at a cost of $8.6 million – more than the contract cost for the entire previous year. That extension lasted through the Democratic National Convention and expires Sept. 22.

Aldermen passed legislation in May that required a City Council vote to end the use of ShotSpotter or reduce violence prevention funding in any wards.

The new ordinance passed on Sept. 18 would transfer the final decision on whether to keep ShotSpotter to Snelling, who was appointed by Johnson. Snelling has said he supports “any technology that will help solve violent crimes and save lives.” 

Analysis of the gun shot detection system by the University of Chicago Crime Lab found it likely saves about 85 lives per year. It immediately sends help rather than awaiting a call from someone.

ShotSpotter has offered to reduce the price of the deal by 48% for the next 15 months.

The mayor declined the offer but told aldermen he would be willing to work with the City Council to identify an alternative to the current ShotSpotter system. The contract is still set to expire on Sept. 22.