ACTION REQUESTED:
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Communication from the City Manager and Chief of Police with a Request to APPROVE a SOLE SOURCE PURCHASE of ShotSpotter Investigate and Software Setup Yearly Maintenance Costs for 3 Years from SHOTSPOTTER, INC., in the Amount of $84,900.00.
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BACKGROUND: On March 13th, 2020 the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) released the FY2020 Strategies for Policing Innovation (SPI) Competitive Grant Solicitation. The City of Peoria Department applied under the purpose area of this program for funding of technology-driven justice information sharing solutions in response to a precipitous increase in violent crime and homicides. It is for this purpose which the Police Department seeks to leverage federal funds for the purchase of technology-driven solutions and improvements that incorporate data sharing at a local level across multiple platforms, under the proposed Peoria Police Department Data Sharing Initiative. In November 2020 the City of Peoria was notified of its award of $516,123.00 in federal funds to support the Peoria Police Department Data Sharing Initiative. With these funds the City of Peoria will upgrade Police Department information technology systems that are in need, including in car Mobile Data Terminals (MDTs) which are overdue for replacement and out of warranty, purchase ShotSpotter Investigate software to give detectives the tools they need to capture, track, and collaborate on gun crime investigations, as well as address the software needs of the Police Department’s Focused Deterrence Program.
In 2021, officers of the Peoria Police Department responded to over 1,700 ShotSpotter alerts and processed over 570 NIBIN (National Integrated Ballistic Information Network) reports, which led to over 200 separate investigations. On average, a police detective utilizes up to 5 separate systems to gather, document, analyze, and disseminate information for gun-related crimes. The biggest hurdle to gun crime investigations is the ability to capture, track and collaborate on investigations from a single, shared digital case folder. Each gun crime incident generates multiple leads that must be quickly and accurately analyzed to identify similar patterns, witnesses, victims, and suspects. As the number of police officers decreases and gun crime increases, this task is becoming more difficult to do. ShotSpotter Investigate™ is a cloud-based Crime Gun Intelligence Center (CGIC) software solution. Investigate tracks and reports on gun crime, and the platform’s analytics and reporting tools provide real-time visibility into gun-related cases. In addition, the proposed CGIC system will use incident information from ShotSpotter’s Respond™ system and ingest National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN) hits and alerts. No vendor other than ShotSpotter can deliver the combined capabilities described above in a single SaaS platform.
FINANCIAL IMPACT: The City of Peoria will utilize $84,900.00 of SPI Grant Funding in order to combat violent and gun-related crime within the City.
NEIGHBORHOOD CONCERNS: There are no neighborhood concerns identified at this time
IMPACT IF APPROVED: The City of Peoria Police department will be able to further advance its gun-crime intelligence and expand it NIBIN and ShotSpotter Respond capabilities, with the intention of combatting and reducing violent and gun related crime. ShotSpotter Investigate will also assist with better organization and work flow as the system automatically creates searchable, chronological case index, automatically route casework through approval processes, and develop interactive presentations for court via case folder dashboards.
IMPACT IF DENIED: If denied, the City of Peoria Police Department will not be able to efficiently link its NIBIN, ShotSpotter Respond, and Intelligence sources, which would not allow for an increase in efficiency and effectiveness of gun-crime investigations.
ALTERNATIVES: There are no alternatives identified at this time.
EEO CERTIFICATION NUMBER: Not applicable for this request.
WHICH OF THE GOALS IDENTIFIED IN THE COUNCIL’S 2016 - 2029 STRATEGIC PLAN DOES THIS RECOMMENDATION ADVANCE?
1. Financially Sound City Government, Effective City Organization
2. Grow Peoria: Businesses, Jobs, and Population
WHICH CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTOR(S) FROM THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN DOES THIS RECOMMENDATION IMPLEMENT?
1. Reduce crime.
2. Support sustainability.
3. Have an efficient government.
DEPARTMENT: Police