A Bakersfield city committee dedicated to public safety this week discussed arming park rangers with tasers and body-worn cameras and placing gunfire detection technology at local schools.
Councilman Chris Parlier asked city staff to develop potential policies for park rangers to use tasers to include code enforcement officers at the Safe Neighborhoods and Community Relations committee meeting.
Bakersfield Police Department Assistant Chief Brent Stratton said ShotSpotter technology — equipment intended to pinpoint gunfire and alert police — could be a topic to discuss with school districts. Campus shootings and homicides have decreased after historic highs in Bakersfield.
“It’s worse than what we thought,” city Parks Director Rick Anthony said of the violence.
City Manager Christian Clegg noted that city staff are examining policies to give body-worn cameras and tasers to park rangers based on a previous referral by council members.
Michael Dobbs, the supervisor for the park rangers, noted tasers weren’t an option when initially fleshing out this new department. But Parlier said tasers are a “critical” piece of equipment for park rangers and he has also referred city staff to re-examine if code enforcement officers should carry them.
ShotSpotter has been used in Bakersfield since 2018, and schools may welcome the technology.
Police have met with Bakersfield College about introducing ShotSpotter onto its campus. Police also asked the Kern High School District and the Kern County Superintendent of Schools Office to consider placing the technology throughout their campuses.
The technology has been installed around 70 locations in Bakersfield. It detects gunfire and immediately tells police the location. Stratton said ShotSpotter’s radius can range from a few feet to miles depending on the program.
Though local schools haven’t experienced mass shootings recently, Stratton said the technology allows them to be prepared.
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