Suffolk Extends ShotSpotter for a Year After Flock Delay

Suffolk County will keep ShotSpotter gunshot detection in place for another year after delaying a planned switch to Flock Safety, according to county records and reporting Wednesday.

The Suffolk County RFP Waiver Committee on Sept. 16 approved a Suffolk County Police Department request to revise the county's contract with SoundThinking Inc., the company behind ShotSpotter, "to temporarily continue coverage," Newsday reported. A county public notice scheduled the special meeting for 11 a.m. at the W.H. Rogers Legislative Building in Smithtown, with Chris DeLuca listed as chair. No Legislature resolution number for the extension was found in available reporting.

Newsday, citing county records and a price proposal, said the extension runs up to $1.2 million for one year — Sept. 6, 2026, through Sept. 5, 2027 — paid in quarterly installments of $308,700. The paper said the deal is about $300,000, or 20%, below

An SCPD spokesperson, in a written statement to News 12 Long Island, said the department sought the amendment "due to unforeseen circumstances surrounding the acquisition and implementation of a new system" and that extend

The pause stalls a Flock Safety gunshot-detection contract Newsday reported in A

Legislator Greg Doroski (D-Mattituck/Jamesport) has pressed for a fuller public airing of Flock's capabilities and limits. Presiding Officer Anthony Piccirillo has said he has serious questions about Flock and, after Wednesday's delay news, that he was seeking more information on the reason, Newsday reported. County Executive Ed Romaine's spokesman deferred comment on the delay to the police department. Flock representatives did not appear at a Sept. 3 Legislature Public Safety Committee meeting where Doroski had sought them; News 12 reported they were expected in October. The next Public Safety Committee date cited in recent coverage is Oct. 8.

SoundThinking and Flock spokespeople did not immediately respond to Newsday when the extension was approved.ugust as five years and $3.79 million, covering 23.5 square miles then served by ShotSpotter. The RFP Waiver Committee approved that deal 3-0 at an April 15, 2026, meeting, Newsday said. County officials described the Flock contract as audio gunshot detection, not automatic license-plate-reader cameras. News 12 and the New York Post have described the same deal as nearly $4 million.

Coverage continues in communities that include Central Islip, Coram, Bellport, Wyandanch, and Mastic, according to Newsday's account of the system footprint. Earlier reporting on ShotSpotter's return has also named Bay Shore, Brentwood, Huntington Station, and North Amityville among areas with sensors. Those lists come from secondary coverage, not a 2026 county map PDF.

District Attorney's office statistics cited by Newsday put Suffolk at 32 shootings and 35 victims in 2025, with 12 of those shootings inside a ShotSpotter zone. The same account said police logged 87 "shots fired" complaints that year, and that about half of those shots had no accompanying 911 call.ing SoundThinking would "prevent any operational disruption."

Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina, in a letter to the committee quoted by Newsday, cited an "unforeseen circumstance in acquiring a new system for the Department" and said the extension would allow "continuity of system service and updates after the full implementation of the new system." Det. Sgt. Dan Acer, appearing before the committee, told the panel there had been "some issues with the implementation of that program" and that police need "gap coverage" so the county does not lose gunshot detection in covered areas. Acer said the department anticipates about one year to transition to the new company, Newsday reported.

Officials have not publicly detailed what the unforeseen circumstance is. Available reporting does not establish privacy backlash, a Legislature vote, or a Flock cancellation as the stated cause of the hold. the prior annual subscription and that SoundThinking offered to waive a $9,500 annual API Notifications fee. Those figures have not been confirmed against a published county PDF for this package.