Fresno installs system to track gunshots

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Shot Tracker system instantly figures out where gunfire is coming from and displays it on a satellite image.

Fresno Police Chief Jerry Dyer demonstrated using the sounds of four recent shootings in the city. "This system will allow officers to be notified within a few seconds of the gunshot being heard," he said.

Dyer believes the system will help catch those shooting and find their victims. "Not only will this increase the safety of officers knowing where that gunshot is coming from, it will allow us to be able to locate victims more quickly so that we can get them the medical aid that they need," he said.

The system uses acoustic monitors, microphones, placed on utility poles and buildings in strategic areas. Police don't want us to show the devices, or tell exactly where they are located. But they are concentrated in high crime areas, and plans are to expand the system in the coming years.

Dyer says it's time for a system like this in Fresno. "Shootings in our city this year are up by 24 percent; 181 shootings this year compared to 146 last year," he said.

The system is being financed with a three-year $450,000 law enforcement grant. Dyer says if it works, he hopes the City Council and Mayor Ashley Swearengin will be willing to fund expansion out of the city budget.