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Gunshot Detectors And More Police Cameras Coming To South And West Sides

By Heather Cherone | February 21, 2017 9:27am | Updated on February 24, 2017 11:40am
 Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Supt. Eddie Johnson tour the Strategic Decision Support Center at the Engelwood Police District Headquarters.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Supt. Eddie Johnson tour the Strategic Decision Support Center at the Engelwood Police District Headquarters.
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Mayor's Office

AUSTIN — Police officers in the Austin and Deering police districts will soon have new tools at their disposal to prevent gun violence from happening — and to lock up criminals fast, the mayor's office announced Tuesday.

Chicago police officials said the department's Shotspotter program that detects gunshots will be expanded to cover the entire Austin and Deering districts, officials said.

In addition, the number of cameras keeping watch from the sky will be increased in an effort to help officers monitor crime — and track trends — in real time and redeploy officers quickly, officials said.

That data will be fed into a Strategic Decision Support Centers at each district's headquarters for analysis, and crucial information will be sent to officers in the field via smartphone or in-car computer, officials said.

The new technology for both districts will cost $3 million total, said Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesman for the department.

Representatives of the mayor and police department did not respond Tuesday to questions about how the expansion would be paid for or provide a specific timetable for its implementation beyond saying it would be in place in the "coming weeks."

The new technology was first rolled out in the Englewood and Harrison police districts.

In a statement, the mayor's office said the effort had already paid off.

"Since launching the technology, the Englewood District recorded its longest streak without a shooting in nearly three years," according to the mayor's office.

After surging in 2016, violence in Chicago has shown no sign of slowing in the first month of 2017, with just as many shootings and murders in January 2017 as in January 2016.

During a visit to Washington, D.C. earlier this month Emanuel said asked Trump administration officials for help covering the cost to expand the use of the technology citywide.