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Toronto Police not planning on using gunshot-detection system

The Toronto Police Service will not be bringing in the ShotSpotter system to target gun violence in the city.

February 27, 2019  By Staff


In mid-February, Toronto Police tweeted, “As a result of research and based on the technology that exists, we were given the opinion that ShotSpotter technology could compromise section 8 of the Charter of Rights, specifically unreasonable search and seizure. We are still exploring other ways of addressing gun violence.”

ShotSpotter first made headlines in Canada’s largest city last summer when Mayor John Tory proposed purchasing it. The Toronto Police Services Board approved the motion but required police Chief Mark Saunders to provide a report on the technology.

ShotSpotter, which, according to the CBC, has been used at times by nearly 100 U.S. cities, “detects loud sounds, filters them to determine whether they are gunfire and, if they are, forwards a report to police.”

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