Category Archives: Expert Commentary

GUNSHOTS RING OUT in a densely populated city neighborhood. Within seconds, based on data from an array of sound sensors deployed in the area, police are able to pinpoint the exact spot where the gunfire happened and dispatch the nearest officers to the scene, giving them a leg up in the race to catch theContinue reading “Commonwealth Beacon: ShotSpotter in the Cross Hairs”

A report by the Chicago Police Department (CPD) that said officers respond more quickly to ShotSpotter alerts than 911 calls doesn’t make a convincing argument for keeping the technology, according to experts who reviewed it. Eight university professors specializing in data science, sociology and criminology said the report lacked a number of key statistical measurements,Continue reading “South Side Weekly: CPD Stats on ShotSpotter Full of Holes, Experts Say”

WASHINGTON (7News) — 7News I-Team was all over disturbing video coming out of Prince George’s County Police Department involving an officer’s use of force Cell phone video posted on social media showed Prince George’s County police officer Steven Tucker and another officer struggling with a suspect who was handcuffed. During this incident, both officers hadContinue reading “ABC News 7: Prince George’s Co. Police Questioned Over Body-Worn Cameras Falling Off During Arrest”

WASHINGTON (7News) — 7News has discovered a major concern about the Prince George’s County Police Department. A lack of backseat cages may have led to disturbing incidents of use of force. It appears that the Prince George’s County Police Department’s lack of back seat cages in their patrol cars in two separate incidents of useContinue reading “ABC News 7: Suspects in Prince George’s are Allowed to Sit in Front Seat of Cop Cars. Is That a Risk?”

PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY, Md. (7News) — Earlier this month, 7News was the first to show you a disturbing video coming out of the Prince George’s County Police Department. One of its officers hit a suspect eight times in the head after the suspect spit at the officer. It was ruled justifiable. Now, 7News has questionsContinue reading “ABC News 7: Second Disturbing Use of Force Video From Inside Prince George’s County Police Dept.”

PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY, Md. (7News) — 7News obtained a disturbing video of a Prince George’s County police officer and his use of force. Some of the footage is hard to watch and until now, the public has never viewed the video. Police officers have a very tough job and it’s a dangerous one. We doContinue reading “ABC News 7: Prince George’s County Officer Hits Suspect 8 Times in Head After Being Spat On”

When a gunshot goes off, police will tell you seconds matter, which is why for years, the gunshot warning technology called ShotSpotter has been so popular with police departments across the country. “To know where the incidents of gunshots are taking place and to be able to respond immediately, as quickly as possible, is veryContinue reading “NBC News Boston: Is ShotSpotter Gunfire Detection Technology Actually Helping our Communities?”

Roughly 18 months after police officials labeled gunshot detection technology as not “fiscally responsible,” an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department working group reversed course and recommended purchasing ShotSpotter services, according to a 2023 report obtained by Mirror Indy. In 2021, against a backdrop of protesters calling for the city to defund the police, IMPD Deputy Chief KendaleContinue reading “Mirror Indy: IMPD Recommended City Contract With ShotSpotter After 2022 Pilot”

Early one morning last May, on a bungalow-lined street in Avalon Park, ShotSpotter detected real gunshots: more than half a dozen rounds fired. It was a busy night, and officers didn’t make it to the scene for more than half an hour. But when they arrived they found 24-year-old Aréanah Preston, a Loyola law studentContinue reading “Chicago Tribune: With ShotSpotter Staying in Chicago for the Time Being, Dispute Continues Over the System’s Usefulness”

The policing profession spends a lot of time discussing and studying programs and policies, and less time thinking about how they’re implemented. Why can a program that’s effective in one city be a disaster in another city? How much of a program or policy’s effectiveness can be attributed to the way it was implemented? AtContinue reading “Governing: New Policing Strategies and the Challenge of Implementation”