Chicago won't renew contract for controversial gunshot detection system

Our Take

CBS Chicago's report on Mayor Brandon Johnson ending the city's ShotSpotter contract is a rare case of a city actually walking back a surveillance program instead of expanding it. For years, residents and researchers questioned whether the gunshot detection system did much beyond sending police into Black and Brown neighborhoods on false alarms. Credit to CBS Chicago for tracking a story that a lot of outlets dropped once the political fight got messy.

But don't mistake this for Chicago stepping back from surveillance policing altogether. When one system gets cut, another often slides in to fill the budget line and the political need to "do something" about crime. Flock Safety's automated license plate readers are exactly that kind of replacement technology — sold on the same promise of objective, tech-driven crime fighting, with even less public debate about accuracy, retention, or who gets access to the data.

ShotSpotter's downfall shows what happens when communities actually push back and demand evidence. The same scrutiny needs to land on ALPR networks before they become as entrenched as ShotSpotter was. Check our map to see if Flock cameras are already logging your plate, and visit take action to find out how to push your city council before another unaccountable system gets locked in for years.