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WHICH IS ALSO WHY IT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST TO GO. TERRY LIVED TO SOUTH SACRAMENTO -- MOVED TO SOUTH SACRAMENTO TO ESCAPE GUN VIOLENCE AFTER SOMEBODY SHOT HIM IN OAKLAND FIVE YEARS AGO. HE IS DISAPPOINTED THAT SACRAMENTO COUNTY IS CUTTING ITS GUNSHOT TRACKING PROGRAM, KNOWN AS SHOTSPOTTER TECHNOLOGY. >> IF I AM SHOT, I WANT SOMEBODY TO COME HELP ME. >> THE SHERIFF’S OPPOSITE SET UP THE SENSES LAST YEAR IN SOUTH SACRAMENTO COUNTY. THEY DETECTED GUNFIRE AND CAN PINPOINT THE EXACT LOCATION, TRIGGERING AN IMMEDIATE RESPONSE FROM DEDICATED SHOTSPOTTER DEPUTIES. >> THEY SHOULD KEEP IT. >> WITH THE PROGRAM GONE, THAT MEANS DEPUTIES MUST RELY ON PEOPLE TO CALL 911. >> I DON’T THINK IT’S SAFE TO RELY ON PEOPLE BECAUSE PEOPLE DON’T LIKE TELLING ON PEOPLE. >> THE SHERIFF HAD TO CUT NEARLY $4 MILLION. THE SHERIFF DECIDED SHOTSPOTTER HAD TO GO. >> IF YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR PRIORITIES, IT WAS EITHER TAKEAWAY PATROL UNITS THAT RESPOND TO 911 CALLS, WHICH WAS NOT GOING TO BE OK WITH THE SHERIFF. >> GIVEN THE OPTIONS ON THE CHOPPING BLOCK, SOME RESIDENTS THEY IT WAS THE BEST CHOICE. >> IT HAD I -- IF I HAD A CHOICE BETWEEN THE SHOTSPOTTER PROGRAM HAD CUTTING THE OFFICERS, I PREFER TO CUT THE SHOTSPOTTER PROGRAM. >> AND THE GUNFIRE OF THIS WILL GO INTO THEIR REGULAR QUEUE. >> HOPEFULLY IT IS NOT SOMETHING TANGIBLE THAT THE RESIDENCE IN SACRAMENTO COUNTY SEAT. BUT AGAIN, WE WILL DO OUR BEST TO TRY AND GET THOSE UNITS OUT TO THOSE CALLS IN A TIMELY MANNER. >> SHOTSPOTTER SENSORS PICKED UP ACTIVITY OVER 260 TIMES LAST YEAR. SOME RESIDENTS SAW THE DIFFERENCE. >> I DID NOTICE A POLICE HELICOPTER COMING OUT TO THIS NEIGHBORHOOD MORE. >> SOANYA HEARS GUNFIRE ON WEEKENDS A LOT. SHE WORRIES WHAT HER NEIGHBOR’S SILENCE MEANS. >> YOU MIGHT NOTICE FOLKS ARE MORE AFRAID TO SPEAK

Advertisement ShotSpotter to end amid budget cuts at Sacramento County Sheriff's Office Share Shares Copy Link Copy

The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office is ending its gunshot tracking program known as ShotSpotter technology due to budget cuts. “This is a reflection of purely budgetary issues and us trying to do the least impactful things to the community,” Sgt. Tess Deterding said.The sheriff’s office introduced the program in March 2018 in an effort to improve emergency response times. The county installed ShotSpotter sensors in an undisclosed area of south Sacramento County that can detect gunfire, record audio and pinpoint the exact location of the gunshots. The real-time data triggers an immediate response from dedicated deputies. “When you talk about your priorities, it was either take away patrol units that respond to 911 calls, which was not going to be OK with the sheriff,” Deterding said.According to county budget documents, the sheriff had to cut nearly $4 million. At a $1 million price point, Deterding said the sheriff determined the ShotSpotter program had to go. “When it came down to figuring out where does this cut need to come from, unfortunately, this is the program that was introduced the soonest to the department, so kind of was on the chopping block first,” Deterding said. The program cut means the sensors will become inactive after the contract ends in March 2020. Until then, any gunfire alerts will go into the regular queue instead of dedicated deputies responding. “We’ll certainly do our best in the sheriff’s office like we always do to do more with less,” Deterding said. “Hopefully, it’s not something tangible that the residents in Sacramento County see. But again, we will do our best to get those units out to those calls in a timely manner.”