[jlarocco]

Drug dealers and gangbangers aren't stupid. If they see the cops installing these things it's only a matter of time before they'll find out what they are and start vandalizing or destroying them.

From the sound of it, if there's enough crime for these things to be cost effective then there are enough criminals around for somebody to get rid of the shot detectors.

I don't think the comparison to telegraph lines really makes sense. If telegram lines were used solely for reporting crime it would be a better analogy.

[tptacek]

Every high-crime neighborhood in Chicago is studded with cameras with flashing blue lights. The enclosures are hardened. Destruction of CPD cameras has not been a major issue in the city. If the city can keep cameras operational, they can keep acoustic sensors (smaller, no line-of-sight requirements) secure as well.

My guess (just a guess) is that the "criminals will destroy the sensors" concern is totally overblown.

[mahyarm]

I heard about pissed of people in the UK putting a tire over a speed / red light camera post and lighting it on fire. Tires are harder to extinguish than your typical fire and it's usually too late before it can be put out. Eventually it becomes unprofitable for the third party contractor to stay there and they start going away.

[regularfry]

You can put a tire over a speed camera without your picture being taken by it and instantly transmitted off-site.

[celticninja]

It happens but not that frequently.

[politician]

Well, my comment was specifically directed towards the idea of a UAV first responder system. It's not hard to imagine ways that the detection system itself can be hardened (or hidden).

[temphn]

> Drug dealers and gangbangers aren't stupid.

Dispute the premise.

The head capos might have some smarts, in a cunning sort of way. But the footsoldiers and unaffiliated who get into gunfights on public streets? Not so smart. Disorganized American urban criminals aren't at the level of Al-Qaeda or the Mafia.

[mparlane]

You don't need to destroy them to make them ineffective. Just find a way to produce a high number of false positives legally. Or hell, get 10 mates to fire some shots in 10 different locations while you make your hit.

[kika]

Or use a silencer.

[eropple]

I think you greatly misunderstand what a suppressor actually does on a firearm.

[kika]

what do you mean? I know how silencer (sound suppressor) works and I know (and was shooting) a gun which doesn't require a suppressor. The latter one makes no noise AT ALL, except for the mechanics.

[Symmetry]

Presumably the drug _dealers_, who are more likely to be on the receiving end of violence in their own neighborhoods, are going to want to keep those shot detectors unmolested.