Should the City of Chicago restart the use of gunshot detection technology that informs first responders when gunshots are detected?
Mayor Brandon Johnson canceled the city’s contract with the owner of ShotSpotter two years ago, fulfilling a campaign promise he’d made to do so. With a majority of aldermen opposed to that decision, he promised to contract with a new platform offering a similar technology. Two years later, Chicago remains without ShotSpotter, and we’ve seen dozens of cases of gunshot victims lying wounded, dying or dead for hours before being discovered.
What the mayor has done for purely ideological reasons endangers people in communities he considers his base. This should be a no brainer for Chicago voters, who will see this question on their ballots.
We endorse voting yes on bringing back a gunshot detection service.
Read all of the Tribune Editorial Board’s endorsements for the 2026 Illinois general election here.
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