Vallejo surveillance board recommends ongoing use of gunshot detection tech

VALLEJO – Vallejo’s Surveillance Advisory Board recommended last week that the City Council approve continuing use of a controversial gunshot detection technology, despite limited evidence of how effective the technology is for crime management and solving cases.

The board voted 5-1 Thursday with Chair Simon Lee abstaining to recommend the City Council approve a contract with Flock Safety to continue to deploy its Raven technology, following a new data assessment from the Vallejo Police Department. 

The department has been using Flock Safety’s gunshot detection technology for the past year through a beta test, which concludes in September. While the beta test was free, the materials presented to the board do not indicate what a new contract would cost. 

The board in July requested a comprehensive data report to support the department’s claims that the technology is improving crime management, with some members expressing concern that the department wants more sensors placed throughout the city without concrete evidence of Raven’s effectiveness. The surveillance board previously recommended against using the technology amid concerns about its accuracy and efficacy and some cities have discussed ending its use.

Police Capt. Jerome Bautista told the board Thursday in his new report that the department’s data showed how Raven helps with cases involving fired weapons, by aiding in the location of reported gunshots.

Bautista said that it is difficult to use the data on gunshot alerts to make general findings, due to some incidents not being recorded due to technical issues or taking place outside the coverage area the program currently can manage. 

Since Sept. 6, 2024 to July 31, there have been 1,003 Raven alerts, generating 26 cases, according to Bautista’s report. He said that with all “shots fired” incidents wrapped in, there have been in total 1,345 incidents with 99 cases generated. There were 37 incidents where both a shots fired incident report and a Raven gunshot alert took place, which requires a priority one response for multiple units, he said. 

Bautista said that despite creating a low number of cases, the technology has helped save time in locating and responding to incidents, victims and suspects. He noted that there could also be multiple alerts generated from one incident, or a dispatcher recording notifications from multiple Raven devices around a single incident. 

“It has also assisted in finding shooting locations after victims walk into a hospital,” he said. 

Some board members questioned the interpretation of the data provided, given that some areas of the city do not have Raven coverage. Bautista said there were a limited number of sensors to use and “We absolutely would need more.”

Lee asked if the department has heat maps of the entire city to prove where Raven could benefit the department’s work most. 

Bautista said that he can’t share it, in order to protect the locations of the Raven detectors. But he said that the following locations would benefit from increased coverage with more Raven sensors: North Vallejo west of Highway 80 and north of Highway 37, central Vallejo west of Highway 80 and south of Redwood Street, and in south Vallejo west of Highway 8 and south of I-780.

Board member Tony Stewart asked how many shootings this year were solved with Raven technology. 

“Raven alerts alone don’t solve homicides,” Bautista said. However, he said Raven helps identify rolling gunfire with additional locations of gun casings to help track where suspects might be to develop leads for existing cases. 

The city’s contract with Flock Safety will next go before the Vallejo City Council for consideration this fall.