Dayton Says NO to ShotSpotter -- Stop Over-Policing Us and Start Investing In Us
Mayor Nan Whaley, Commissioner Matt Joseph, Commissioner Jeff Mims, Commissioner Chris Shaw, Commissioner Darryl Fairchild, and City Manager Shelley Dickstein
Say no to spending $595,000 on ShotSpotter. Invest in our neighborhoods!
In July 2019, the Dayton Police Department and City Commission forced the ShotSpotter surveillance system on its people, claiming that it was key to "reducing gun violence" on the West Side. In the process, they ignored and misrepresented the recommendations of their own Community Police Council and members of the community who saw ShotSpotter for what it truly is: a $205,000 toy the DPD can use to justify unaccountable targeting of working class Black communities. This is a system that at least eight major US cities have rejected, and ShotSpotter has a history of falsifying data to justify their existence.
Now, the City Commission and the City Manager want to renew the contract for at least 2 more years, and another $390,000! They will be voting on the renewal on Wednesday, November 25th, 2020, and have only allowed comment until TONIGHT, November 24th at 5pm.
Please sign the petition below, share it with your network, and submit a public comment to CCOClerk@daytonohio.gov before 5pm TODAY, November 24, 2020.
With support from Black Lives Matter Dayton and Dayton / Miami Valley DSA
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Petition by
To:
Mayor Nan Whaley, Commissioner Matt Joseph, Commissioner Jeff Mims, Commissioner Chris Shaw, Commissioner Darryl Fairchild, and City Manager Shelley Dickstein
From:
[Your Name]
ShotSpotter was forced on Dayton residents in 2019 for an initial cost of $205,000 with little public input and despite serious concerns from neighborhood leaders and the Community Police Council (CPC), a group appointed by the Commission to advise the City of Dayton on policies that affect community-police relations. The will of the CPC was intentionally misrepresented, and the concerns of the Dayton View Triangle president went unanswered. These strong objections and valid questions of the targeted community were ignored by city officials.
This contract is up for renewal by a vote of the Dayton City Commission on Wednesday, November 25. If passed, this amendment will increase the total expenditure to $595,000. To defend this spending, the City Manager cites an 8% reduction in violent crime in targeted neighborhoods, a misleading statistic without any context provided.
As a member of the Dayton community, I stand in solidarity with my neighbors being denied critical resources during a pandemic to pay for an unnecessary toy targeting predominantly Black communities in West and Northwest Dayton. The data defending the use of ShotSpotter is widely contested, and the questions and concerns raised by the community remain unanswered.
I demand that the City of Dayton not renew its contract with ShotSpotter, and instead seek community input and approval to intentionally reinvest that money in the communities targeted for surveillance. The City’s budget should reflect the community’s values. More equipment for the police department does not make our neighborhoods safer — investment in the health and well-being of our residents does.