Police use ShotSpotter to crackdown on New Year's Eve gunfire

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- We hear it every New Year's Eve, celebratory gunfire ringing in the new year, but what goes up must come down.

"We have had reports on prior New Years where bullets have come through roofs and where people have been struck," said Lieutenant Stephen Viveros with the Fresno Police Department.

Police take gunfire seriously and this New Year's Eve they are using a tool that doesn't miss, it is called ShotSpotter.

"It is highly accurate," said Viveros. "We have expanded our coverage this year, so we are going to take our opportunity to be proactive with our ShotSpotter."

Sensors placed around town are helping police pinpoint the exact location of gunshots. And with data collected from last New Year's Eve, they have already identified residences where gunfire occurred and even paid those homeowners a visit.

"We explained to them that we could monitor them and we are going to continue to monitor them this year," said Viveros.

Their efforts did not stop there, they also had a designated ShotSpotter patrol.

"Those are going to be vehicles that are going to respond to ShotSpotter calls when they are generated and we are going to address those calls immediately," said Viveros.

Police know it's not realistic for them to respond to every gunshot, but rest assured they have a plan to catch those responsible.

"We will make house calls throughout the week, if it is not tonight then it will be throughout the week," said Viveros.

So if you plan on shooting off a gun when the ball drops, you might want to think twice, because police say it can earn you a felony charge and even land you in jail.