SHOTS FIRED

THE FUTURE OF POLICING In police departments across the country, new advances in technology and artificial intelligence are pushing the boundaries of criminal investigations. In cities, police chiefs want advantages against street violence, and unique opportunities to curb gun violence, murders, and other violent crimes.

One of the new advances in technology is called SHOTSPOTTER SHOTSPOTTER is an advanced system of sensors, algorithms, and artificial intelligence that detects, locates, and alerts police to gunshots in real time.

The ShotSpotter System works through sensors attached to buildings and lamp posts throughout Bridgeport. Highly specialized software constantly analyzes audio signals for potential gunshots, filtering out ambient, background noise. Once the sound of gunfire is picked up, the system timestamps the sound and triangulates its exact location. The sound is first confirmed as gunfire through the software before being sent to an acoustic expert for additional analysis. Once the analyst confirms the sound was gunfire, the police are notified.

This entire process takes less than one minute. The National Institute of Justice did a field test of the ShotSpotter system and found that it accurately detected eighty percent of the shots fired. The institute also found that seventy-two percent of the shots were triangulated with a twenty-five-foot margin of error in finding the exact location of gunshots. Testing also found that certain rounds might be more difficult for the system to detect than others.

In Bridgeport, Connecticut between Dec. 21, 2019 and Feb. 11, 2020, ShotSpotter has recorded 126 incidents of shots fired. Some of those incidents are multiple gunshots from the same location and time, according to a recently obtained Freedom of Information Act request.

Fifty-four of the 126 incidents happened in the afternoon and evening, between 12 p.m. and 11:19 p.m. Seventy-two shots fired reports were recorded during the morning hours, between 12 a.m. to 11:59 a.m.

In the business of policing, there are two radio calls that elicit a swift and immediate response. Those two calls are “OFFICER DOWN,” and “SHOTS FIRED.”

THE DOCUMENTARY SERIES SHOTS FIRED is a police procedural documentary series that will travel to one police department each season, to document and follow the narrative after a shooting is detected.

In the business of policing, there are two radio calls that elicit a swift and immediate response. Those two calls are “OFFICER DOWN,” and “SHOTS FIRED.” Being inside the police cars as officers converge on the scene is one of the most dangerous and adrenaline-fueled moments in any officer’s duty.

Our production team will embed in the department to document the exact moment the ShotSpotter alert comes out. They will also follow the aftermath and investigation as the police try to identify if there is a murder or other violent felonies.

THE FORMAT Each episode of SHOTS FIRED begins in the command center of any police department. Command staff and the ShotSpotter Technology are running 24/7. In Act 1, the first alert comes through the system, and our shooter/ producers are embedded in the field with three, different police units.

After the SHOTS FIRED alert is sent, our teams cover the action as officers descend on the scene. In the first episode, we realize that two, young adult males have been wounded on scene. One is clinging to life, and the other is refusing to be taken to the hospital.

Police units are made aware to BOLO for a Grey Toyota Mini-Van, the alleged vehicle of the shooters.

Our teams cover the initial stages of the investigation as detectives create a crime scene.

As that call ends, another SHOTS FIRED comes in over the radio. Five gunshots are registered in a known drug trafficking neighborhood. Again, units are dispatched, and a lone assailant on foot has been spotted at a cross street.

A police helicopter is launched, looking for the suspect.

Two open cases, and we CLIFF Hang on police searching for a gunman, with one dead and two wounded.

Season Arc & Procedural Elements Each episode would have at least two Shots Fired incidents. This procedural element will occur within each hour-long episode. The Season Arc of the show is to follow a few key investigations that close out and resolve the shooting investigations. For example, in Episode 2, police detectives have arrested and charged the shooters from Episode 1. With current technology and surveillance cameras shooting incidents often result in an arrest. For murder investigations, those stories can also be resolved over the course of a season.

“SHOTSPOTTER is an advanced system of sensors, algorithms, and artificial intelligence that detects, locates, and alerts police to gunshots in real time.”

ACCESS/POLICE DEPARTMENTS

POLICE DEPARTMENT

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There are ninety-three cities using ShotSpotter Technology, and the number is growing in the marketplace.

SENSOR

We will target American cities that have diverse urban and suburban environments.

SENSOR

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In the initial stages of development, we will identify three cities.

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GUNFIRE

SENSOR

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When a gun is fired, sensors - usually placed on top of buildings or light poles - record the audio.

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The gunfire’s location is determined by three or more sensors that pick up and triangulate the noise.

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That information is relayed to Newark, CA... Where analysts confirm the gunshots before alerting the corresponding police department, often within 30 to 45 seconds.

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Police receive audio clips and location information to help them respond to the incident. Some departments can access gunshot data on their smartphones or inside their squad cards.