Pontiac — A gunshot detection software will continue to be used in the city despite concerns from the public and some on the City Council about how the information gleaned from the software is used and stored.
The Pontiac City Council voted 5-2 Tuesday to renew the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office’s use of Flock Safety’s Raven Gunshot Detection Technology for $72,000 for two years.
Raven was used by the Sheriff’s Office in the city for six months in a free pilot program. The decision to renew the software program came at the end of a meeting featuring public comment and debate among the council.
“It’s on us to pick up the pieces when tragedy happens, not just to answer philosophical questions,” said Mayor Mike McGuinness, referring to the debate over public safety and privacy rights.
Raven’s vendor Flock has raised concerns about privacy and data sharing in Michigan, where nearly one-third of all law enforcement agencies use the company’s license plate readers, according to data compiled by the company.
In Pontiac, Raven covers three quarter-mile sections in the North Hill Farms, Spring Lake and Newman Lane apartment complex areas. As of May 8, the software had provided 269 gunshot alerts and 212 fireworks alerts, according to an analytics report. The data was used in two homicide cases, four attempted murder cases and three felon in possession of a firearm cases, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
While sheriff’s officials at the City Council’s May 19 meeting praised Raven as a tool for investigating crimes, Lt. Eric Tremonti said he didn’t know where the collected data goes once it’s purged from the department’s database.
At that meeting, council President Adrian Austin requested the Sheriff’s Office do more community engagement before the council voted on its renewal. Austin supported renewing Raven at Tuesday’s meeting, saying the software has been tested and accurately differentiates between gunshots and other loud noises.
Some members of the public at Tuesday’s meeting said they were opposed to renewing Raven.
“Personally, I don’t think what they’re doing with our data or our information can be trusted,” said Destiny Ingram of Pontiac.
Samantha Hunt of Waterford Township noted Flock has recently changed its standard terms and conditions. The American Civil Liberties Union said in April that the company removed a statement in its terms and conditions that said it would not own or sell customer data.
“They make their contracts explicitly confusing on purpose, and they come to you under the guise of safety,” said Hunt.
The concerns were echoed by Councilman Mikal Goodman, who said other communities have used surveillance software with fewer privacy concerns than Flock. He questioned whether city officials had explored other options before approving the software.
“Crime has been being solved long before we had access to Flock and Raven. Crime will continue to be solved, and so it is incumbent upon us to find solutions if we want to move in this direction,” said Goodman, who was joined by Councilwoman Milanna Jones in opposition.
Councilman Chris Jackson said Raven could work in a community like Pontiac, where residents might be desensitized to gunshots or afraid of being part of a police investigation.
“What the system does is problem solve in more ways than one,” Jackson said.
The council passed the renewal of the program after Councilwoman Kathalee James proposed a resolution for Flock technology used in Pontiac to undergo third-party audits. The council is set to vote on James’ resolution at its June 30 meeting.
“Every decision is not going to be a decision everybody likes, so I want to commend the council tonight,” said Councilman William Carrington about the renewal.
mbryan@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Pontiac renews Flock gunshot detection software in city
Reporting by Max Bryan, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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By Max Bryan, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
