-Caveat Lector- Gunshot locator stumbles on New Year's Eve ASSOCIATED PRESS ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ -- LOS ANGELES — A $2-million device designed to track the origin of a gun shot hit a crippling snag New Year's Eve: fireworks. The acoustic sensors used to pinpoint the location of celebratory gunshots couldn't immediately tell the difference between celebratory pyrotechnics, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Bob Killeen said. During the first half-hour of 2000, the so-called "Shotspotter" registered 700 separate tiny explosions in South Los Angeles. However, the police department received only 285 reports of shots fired throughout the city during the night, police Cmdr. David Kalish said. The device, which took five years to develop, still has a long way to go before law enforcement can use it to nab gun-blasting revelers, Killeen said. "We can go banging on a person's door now and say, 'We tracked seven or eight gunshots to your front porch New Year's Eve,' but without witnesses, we can't really arrest that individual," Killeen said. The device will mainly be used to warn suspected violators, he said. The Shotspotter utilizes a handful of rooftop sensors and recording devices that respond to sharp noises. It then displays that location on a computer screen monitored by police dispatchers. Firing a gun into the air brings the risk that a descending bullet will kill or injure someone. A 12-year-old South Los Angeles boy was struck in the head shortly after midnight by a bullet, authorities said. His injuries were not considered life-threatening. There have been about 4,000 incidents of such gunfire in Los Angeles over the last seven years. The Shotspotter is still a viable law enforcement tool despite its confusing New Year's Eve results, said Jason Dunham, who helped develop the system's software for Trilon Technology of Los Altos. "This will prove very valuable during the rest of the year," Dunham said. "Fireworks are illegal, too." DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion and informational exchange list. Proselyzting propagandic screeds are not allowed. Substance—not soapboxing! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory', with its many half-truths, misdirections and outright frauds is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRL gives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credeence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://home.ease.lsoft.com/archives/CTRL.html http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
