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precise time and location (latitude and longitude) represent- ed on a map. Other situational intelligence, such as multiple shooters, are sent back to the SDSC within 30 seconds.
A view comes up on the screen with the radius of where the shots were fired and interacts with Genetec so the SDSC can focus on the targeted area. In 011 alone, there more than 200 cameras in service, with extra dedication to key areas like those where Marshall, Orr and Manley high schools are located.
When a ShotSpotter response or a 9-1-1 call comes in, the system can trigger all cameras in that cluster, and the screens become populated with icons: blue cars show which beat cars are logged in; a red dot shows any gun that has been identi- fied in the cluster; a yellow dot captures where a robbery took place; a green marijuana plant comes up to show areas of nar- cotics arrests; orange boxes are the result of predictive analysis from HunchLab showing where a shooting could take place.
“It’s about response time, right,” Ortiz submits. “In the past, we had to rely on a citizen calling in when gunshots were heard. And then you had to determine, ‘Is that a firecracker?’ ShotSpotter alerts us first, and it usually comes before any ser- vice call, so it reduces response time. I like it because of the data mapping out these clusters showing upcoming trends in violence. We can compare and contrast with human intel, and we’re in constant communication with officers in the beat cars and with our district intelligence officers.”
Menoni adds that detectives check in with the SDSC throughout the day. It’s become part of their daily protocol to ask about information received or to ask for a look at a clus- ter in the objective of improving investigations that will take shooters off the street and reduce the violence. Additionally,
Like most districts, the SDSC in 011 includes two o cers and a criminal intelligence analyst. In 011, that is Yesenia Ortiz (right).
hot clusters can be addressed by having beat cops spend extra time in those areas as an extra deterrent.
“We bookmark things so anybody can check out a location at a certain moment,” Rodriguez qualifies. “Part of going to the calls is being able to see exactly what has been going on there the past seven days. And we’re preventing by presence, if noth- ing else. We’re keeping a keen eye out and always glancing, be- cause there is always something going on.”
Spot Light
The Monday following Thanksgiving in 011 provided evi- dence of how significant ShotSpotter and the accompanying systems can be to every officer, from beat cops up to command staff. The volume of calls, the workload, the extent of how busy every officer was on street showed up, down to the block level and severity of the call. Think of all the ways that data can be used to enhance the quality of police work and police life for
34 CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ JANUARY 2018
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