ShotSpotter Data Shows Gunshot Rates Have Increased 48% in 2020
ShotSpotter, a policing solution that enables law enforcement to more effectively respond to, investigate and deter crime, reported a dramatic rise of 48 percent in gunshot incidents during 2020 compared with 2019, according to the company’s data that tracks gunfire in more than 100 U.S. cities that use its technology. The increase comes during a year that included a global pandemic, calls for social justice and heightened political divisions.
ShotSpotter gunfire statistics for 2020 showed a spike in gunshot incidents as compared to the prior year in the weeks following George Floyd’s death (May 25). That trend continued during the next four weeks of nationwide protests and, while dropping the last week of June, gunfire levels remained at a significantly higher rate throughout the remainder of the year as compared to the prior year.