CAPE GIRARDEAU, Ill. — In an effort to reinforce the city's policies around celebratory gunfire, the Cape Girardeau Police Department has announced plans to deploy patrol officers to areas of the city known for illegal celebratory gunfire and intends to arrest those caught discharging firearms in public.
According to a news release from the department, officers will use ShotSpotter, which is specialized technology to help identify and locate gunfire. Officers will respond to all activations of the ShotSpotter technology during the Fourth of July holiday weekend.
The department reminds the public that people can be hit, injured or killed when any bullet is discharged from a firearm, even into the sky.
The use of the technology also helps the department gather gunfire intelligence and data to fight violence proactively, the release said.
