CHICAGO – ShotSpotter gunfire detectors made their mark Saturday evening by pinpointing the location of a mass shooting in Little Village before receiving 911 calls and sending police to a second “shots fired” incident that ended with a suspect in custody.
Company officials have said Chicago’s ShotSpotter network will be deactivated when the city’s contract expires at midnight tonight, barring a sharp reversal from Mayor Brandon Johnson.
In Little Village, a gunman got out of a black Jeep and shot seven mourners during a prayer vigil in the front yard of a home in the 2500 block of South Spaulding around 10:08 p.m., Chicago police said.
A 31-year-old man died from multiple gunshot wounds. The condition of the other six victims, all men between the ages of 31 and 48, was fair. Most had gunshot wounds to their lower bodies, but one suffered an abrasion to the top of his head, according to CPD.
The first sign of trouble came when an officer at the Ogden (10th) district station reported hearing gunfire to the south at 10:08 p.m. Less than 30 seconds later, the county intelligence center issued a ShotSpotter alert: 18 high-capacity rounds on the sidewalk at 2501 South Spaulding, then 12 more high-capacity rounds at the same location. Officers later reported finding 27 gun casings at 2501 South Spaulding, next to the garden where the vigil was held.
Although ShotSpotter worked perfectly, the local CPD district was unfortunately short. Police were slow to respond because a shift change was in progress and the district’s active units were on work assignments.
Officers arrived at the scene of the shooting at 10:14 p.m., about six minutes after the ShotSpotter alert was announced, according to police records. By then, all the victims had been transported to Mount Sinai Hospital in private cars.
The gunfire detection system also provided valuable assistance at Back of the Yards earlier Saturday evening.
At 8:06 p.m., ShotSpotter detected a bullet fired in an alley behind the 5300 block of South Wood. Officers quickly arrived and reported hearing more gunfire to the east.
ShotSpotter also detected the second round of gunfire. Six bullets were said to have been fired in the 5400 block of South Paulina, about two blocks east of the first incident. Officers, who were already in the area due to the first ShotSpotter alert, saw a man running from the location of the second alert while carrying a gun, according to police radio broadcasts.
They chased him and took him into custody. Police also found a 44-year-old man shot in the 5400 block of South Paulina. CPD said he was in good condition with two gunshot wounds. A witness told police that the man they caught with the gun was the one who shot the victim.
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