Martinsville's new gunshot detectors aim to deter criminals through rapid response

MARTINSVILLE, Va. – Martinsville Police installed 140 gunshot detectors throughout the city to help combat crime.

To install the new technology, the department received an $80,000 grant from the Attorney General's Operation Ceasefire.

Martinsville Police Chief Robert Fincher said the department can decide how to use the funds, but they must be used for technology that would support gun violence prevention or education. Other possible uses for the funding included camera systems and the analysis of ammunition.

“This is part of the Operation Ceasefire Virginia we are conducting. We are trying to reduce gun violence in Virginia and in Martinsville in particular and a few years ago we were selected as a Ceasefire City and while it has not been a major problem recently, any improvement we can make can help reduce gun violence is one Improvement for everyone,” Fincher said.

The gunshot detectors use sound detection and triangulation. The detectors can be used to detect sounds that correspond to the sound frequency of a gunshot. When a shot is fired, multiple detectors work together to help officers determine the location from which the shot was fired.

Chief Fincher said this new technology will help his department because it notifies officers immediately. He said sometimes the suspect is gone before the officer arrives after someone calls 911.

“The whole idea is that if we can get the word out that we have a super-quick response, that if someone fires a shot, maybe someone will think twice about doing it, or maybe if it actually results in a crime “If the crime comes with gun violence, our response will be quick enough to catch the perpetrator on the spot and prevent future crimes,” said Fincher.

He said police have received about eight shooting attempts this year, including for self-inflicted violence and suicide. They had a total of 27 calls for people hearing gunshots.

The new gunshot detectors were installed by a company called Flock Safety, which also installed license plate readers in Martinsville about two years ago. Flock Safety also installed license plate readers in Lynchburg and Roanoke City. The cameras are not currently rolling, but Fincher said they will be in the next few weeks.

The new technology is spread throughout the city.

“We basically started in the center of the city and worked outward in a radius to cover the maximum area available to us for the grant we received. Where the detectors should then be placed will then depend on the company’s experts to cover that area,” Fincher said.

They are in fixed locations but are not permanent.

10 News spoke with Fincher about some of the safety concerns people have in Martinsville.

“So I understand their concerns. It was one of my concerns. I didn't want to install something that could be used for other things like monitoring people, but upon examining the system, it's only tuned to a certain frequency range, so it can't detect you even if you're talking directly underneath it. That's why we communicated that we want to make sure that people's rights are not violated,” Fincher said.

Fincher also said they are considering using technology that would allow officers to listen to a person's 911 call to a switchboard in real time.