'Shots Fired' calls lowest in years
January 1, 2009
KPHO.COM
Phoenix, A.Z.— The Phoenix Police Department received the second lowest number of "shots fired" calls between 11:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m. in 10 years.
It was the second lowest number since the first operation was conducted in 2003, said Sgt. Tommy Thompson of the Phoenix Police Department.
This year, there were 46 more calls during that time, which was a 13 percent increase over the previous year, Thompson said. However, the total was still down 23 percent from two years ago, he said.
Last year, the number of calls was down 53 percent from the year before the first operation was conducted, Thompson said. This year, even with the slight increase in calls, the total number received between 11:30 p.m. and 12:30 a.m. was still down 47 percent from the year before the operations began, he said.
Five people were arrested New Year's Eve for discharging a firearm in the city of Phoenix.
Thompson said police have not received reports of anyone suffering wounds from random gunfire in the city of Phoenix.
Glendale utilizes ShotSpotter
In Glendale, police said random gunfire calls were down 50 percent in their city. Officers used their device called a shot spotter to help pinpoint random gunfire.
“When a couple sensors pick up the sound, they judge the strength,” said Jim Toomey of the Glendale Police Department. ”They basically triangulate on the signal and they can tell us where that shot came from.”
Glendale police began using the device in the wake of a 1999 tragedy that led to the passage of Shannon’s Law.
Shannon Smith, 14, was on the phone in her back yard on New Year’s Eve when a random bullet hit her.
“The bullet had actually entered the top of her head, so although there was blood around you just couldn't see an entry wound,” said Otis Smith, her father.
Shannon Smith died and police later learned someone two to three miles away had fired the fatal shot while celebrating that night.
Shannon’s Law makes it a felony to fire a gun in the air.
“The thing we're trying to do is educate people to understand when it does go up in the air, it doesn't just break up, it hits somebody and it can cause tremendous damage,” Toomey said.
|
Erin Lopez |
|