Denver neighborhoods will hear gunshots Monday night as police test ShotSpotter system

The Denver Police Department stressed in an announcement that there is no danger to the public.

Ashley Dean

Nov. 06, 2017, 11:05 a.m.

Residents of Denver’s Montbello, Clayton, Villa Park and Westwood neighborhoods will hear gunshots tonight between 7 and 10 p.m. while police test the ShotSpotter gunfire detection system.

The Denver Police Department stressed in an announcement that there is no danger to the public. Bullets will be fired into a bullet trap, not into the air or on the ground.

The tests are for the currently installed ShotSpotter system, which Denver police have been using since 2015. The time frame for testing was chosen because most shootings and reports of shots fired happen at night and acoustics are different then, the department said.

The system involves a network of acoustic sensors — the locations of which are not disclosed — that can detect when a gun is fired, precisely determine the location of the gunfire and notify 911 dispatchers in less than a minute.

Since the department began using ShotSpotter, it’s resulted in 96 arrests and the recovery of 78 guns.

Miguel "Angel" Harlston processes ballots inside Denver Elections Division headquarters on election day, May 7, 2019. (Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite)

How Denver’s city elections might change

Officials and the public are weighing a change to how votes are counted and when the election happens.

A historic marker in LoDo that details the "Chinese Riot of 1880." Feb. 25, 2021.

How can Denver recognize its once-thriving Chinatown?

Residents want to provide more accurate context about the city's Asian-American history, which could mean adding historic markers in LoDo, where Denver's Chinatown once flourished.

Foster plays in the snow with his au pair, Ambar Tossolini, in GreenWay Park in the Central Park neighborhood. Nov, 24, 2020.

Things to do in Denver this weekend, Feb. 26-28

The return of (some) in-person events.

Kids sled the big hill at Ruby Hill in Denver. Feb. 25, 2021.

Denver’s music venues, libraries, rec centers: Here’s what we know about what’s opening when

The state is considering changes that would allow venues to open at larger capacity this spring.

Double protected bike lanes on South Broadway. (Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite)

The Broadway bike ‘superhighway’ might be done sometime in 2023?

Eight years after it started.

A rendering of a proposed 72-unit housing complex for people experiencing homelessness called Valor on the
Fax.

The city is considering funding an apartment complex that would offer services to unhoused people who have brain injuries

The 72-unit complex would be built on East Colfax Avenue.

A giant English oak towering over Milwaukee Street in Cherry Creek is about to be cut down. Feb. 23, 2021.

A pretty big tree comes down in Cherry Creek

The dance between urban growth and urban nature continues, with tears and fancy furniture cutting in.

A protester kneels before officers after Aurora Police forcibly cleared the municipal building lawn at the end of a series of rallies demanding justice for Elijah McClain. June 27, 2020.

Aurora police chief said trust between cops and residents is broken but declined to comment on punishment for officers involved in Elijah McClain’s death

Wilson and other city officials responded to an independent report blasting APD's actions in the Elijah McClain case.

Some of the many painted walls in Five Points' RiNo Art District. Jan. 12, 2021.

How the CRUSH investigation came together, and why we reported it

A behind-the-curtain look at Denverite’s months-long investigation into CRUSH founder Robin Munro.

Denver Police officers enforce a cleanup of an encampment in front of Morey Middle School. Capitol Hill, Aug. 6, 2020.

Police will continue to patrol homeless sweeps, but Mayor Hancock wants civilians to play a larger role

The administration also wants to divert non-emergency 911 calls about homelessness to civilian workers.

Aurora police critically mishandled encounter with Elijah McClain before his death, independent report finds

McClain died in August 2019 after being placed in two carotid holds by police and injected with ketamine by EMS.

Surrounded by friends and supporters, Robyn Frances stands in front of a mural dedicated to the women of Denver's art scene, off Larimer Street in Five Points' RiNo district, that was recently defaced. Dec. 19, 2020.

Sexual assault allegations, violence, bullying: Women say Denver’s street art scene and its leaders have failed them

Allegations against the founder of the largest, most popular street art festival in Denver have circulated for years. RiNo just parted ways with him.

Jackie Logan works to sell everyting at Neat Stuff on Welton, on the 2500 Block of Welton Street, before she closes up shop for good. Feb. 8, 2021.

One block in Denver’s COVID economy: Older businesses on Welton Street are taking a hit

Jackie Logan's Neat Stuff on Welton gift shop is so far the only casualty on the block.

Candice Vigil, who helps Mental Health Center of Denver clients get work in foodservice, pickets with colleagues and supporters along Federal Boulevard for higher and more predictable wages. Feb. 20, 2021.

Denver’s mental health workers picket for higher pay as their services are more needed than ever

“Most of us are there for the clients, not the pay," peer counselor Benjamin Franklin said. "We don’t get paid that much anyway.”

Cleo Parker Robinson addresses a crowd on the first night of Kwanzaa at the Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Theatre, Dec. 26, 2016. (Kevin J. Beaty/Denverite)

Things to do in Denver this weekend without spreading the coronavirus, Feb. 19-21

Celebrate Black History Month, cheer on the Nuggets, and keep staying home.

A National Weather Center station in Central Park, which will soon become a new monitoring site in the city for the agency. Feb. 17, 2021.

Denver’s weather is gauged some 17 miles away. The National Weather Service is trying to bring that reading a little closer to home.

City Council will vote next week whether to revive a weather station at the old Stapleton airport.

One of many pairs of Konctete Eden sneakers that Stephen McMillon and Anthony Porch hope to distribute to Denverites facing poverty. Feb. 13, 2021.

Seeing a city in need, these Denverites want you to help them distribute 1,500 pairs of shoes

A local entrepreneur and a local musician are working to warm the feet of people living on the edge.

Mayor Michael Hancock speaks during Gov. Jared Polis' press conference on COVID-19 at the Governor's Mansion in Capitol Hill. Nov. 17, 2020.

Mayor Hancock’s Thanksgiving pandemic plane trip didn’t violate any ethics, at least by the city’s standards

"I disagree."

An incoming safe outdoor camping site at Denver Community Church in North Capitol Hill. Dec. 11, 2020.

Denver gives nearly a million dollars to temporary sanctioned campsites for people experiencing homelessness

It's the first time the city is giving the "safe outdoor spaces," as they're known, money directly.

The historic Pancratia Hall is being renovated and will soon become full of affordable housing units on the Loretto Heights campus. Harvey Park South, Feb. 10, 2021.

A peek inside the historic Loretto Heights dorm that will soon be very chic affordable housing

The project is part of the larger campus redevelopment in southwest Denver.

More Denverite