Mayor Johnson does not address how ShotSpotter alerted CPD to Officer Luis Huesca shooting
CHICAGO (CBS) -- According to dispatch recordings, a ShotSpotter sensor alerted police to the shooting that killed Chicago Police Officer Luis Huesca nearly 5 minutes before the first 911 caller early Sunday morning.
Mayor Brandon Johnson on Monday was asked repeatedly about this revelation and his plan to scrap ShotSpotter technology.
The first sign that Officer Huesca was in trouble came in at 2:53 a.m. Sunday, in the form of a ShotSpotter alert for four rounds fired at 5501 S. Kedzie Ave. It was not for another 4 minutes and 50 seconds that a 911 caller picked up the phone, reporting a man on the ground about a block away at 3135 W. 56th St.
Police arrived at the scene sooner than if they had waited for the call.
The reason it matters is because Mayor Johnson, who appeared at a groundbreaking for the $300 million Terminal 3 upgrade at O'Hare International Airport Monday, announced in February the city would phase out the use of the controversial gunshot detection technology this year.
"Our Police Department has the tools that it needs to help us build a better stronger, safer Chicago," said Mayor Johnson, "and as I've said repeatedly, you can't beat policing alone that's a failed strategy."
Johnson on Monday reiterated his reasons for canceling the contract, but would not address the role ShotSpotter may have played in his case. His office negotiated a contract extension through Sept. 22 of this year, followed by a two-month phasing-out period before it's shut down completely.
The CPD has long maintained that ShotSpotter is a critical tool.
It was also the first alert CPD got back in May of last year, when Officer Aréanah Preston was shot and killed during an attempted robbery in Avalon Park. She was also coming home from work.
But notably in that case, an officer was not assigned to the initial ShotSpotter alert, and it took more than 30 minutes for police to respond.
To this day, nearly a year later, the CPD hasn't commented on the delay in responding to the shooting that killed Preston, citing the pending case.
Meanwhile Monday, Johnson also took heat for not standing beside police Supt. Larry Snelling when he delivered the news of Officer Huesca's death on Sunday. The mayor said he was busy talking with the Huesca's family.
"Talk to the family," he said. "That's where I spent my time."
