Skip navigation
Documenting Police Tech in Our Communities
with Open Source Research

Include the following technologies

Milwaukee Police Department: Gunshot Detection

Illustration of how gunshot detection would function in an urban area
Sensors triangulate the location of gunfire.
Credit: ShotSpotter/City of Seattle
Agency Milwaukee Police Department
Location Milwaukee, WI
Technology Gunshot Detection
Vendor ShotSpotter

The Milwaukee Police Department began using ShotSpotter gunshot detection technology in 2010.

More about this technology

Gunshot detection is a technology law enforcement uses to receive alerts on where gunfire may occur in neighborhoods. This technology relies on a series of acoustic sensors mounted on street lights or on the sides of buildings. When a loud noise triggers the sensors, software triangulates the estimated location of the gunfire.

Illustration of how gunshot detection would function in an urban area
Sensors triangulate the location of gunfire.
Credit: ShotSpotter/City of Seattle