Winnipeg to consider gunfire-tracking system: mayor

A gunfire-tracking system used in some U.S. cities could help the Manitoba capital reduce firearm crimes, Winnipeg Mayor Sam Katz said Wednesday.

The system, called ShotSpotter, uses audio sensors to track and respond to gunfire. The sensors detect gunfire, then its computer system uses acoustic triangulation to determine where the shots were fired. The information is relayed to police dispatchers or 911 operators.

"I believe our neighbour to the south, Minneapolis, uses it, and they've had very good success with it," Katz said.

The company that makes the system claims gunfire has gone down 60 to 90 per cent in areas that have implemented the ShotSpotter system.

Winnipeg officials are already considering using surveillance cameras to prevent crime or catch criminals; ShotSpotter technology could be incorporated into that approach, said Katz, adding that he will ask the Winnipeg Police Service to look into the system.

Katz's comments came as Statistics Canada released a report finding Winnipeg's rate of gun crime was second-highest in the country, after Vancouver.

The mayor described the statistics as disappointing, but not surprising.

Winnipeg had 43.9 gun offences for every 100,000 people in 2006; the national average was 27.5, according to the report.

In 2006, 425 Manitobans were the victims of firearm-related violent crime, about two per cent of the total number of victims of violent crime, according to the report. More than 300 cases took place in Winnipeg.

Winnipeg also reported seven firearm-related homicides (one per 100,000) and 123 robberies involving firearms (17 per 100,000).

The Statistics Canada report notes that guns account for only 2.4 per cent of all violent victimizations in the country. Clubs and other blunt objects are higher with three per cent, and knives make up more than double that at 6.2 per cent.

In 2006, Canadian police reported 190 homicides committed with0 a firearm, 33 fewer than the previous year.