NYPD to test gun detectors inside NYC subway stations: What to know

NEW YORK (PIX11) – Gun scanning technology may soon be a reality at most subway stops in New York City.

The NYPD will likely start testing the gun detectors either Friday or Monday, but police haven’t confirmed exactly when it will begin. The scanners are part of a pilot program and, eventually, they’ll get installed at every turnstile, according to Mayor Eric Adams.

Police demonstrated the technology a few months ago. An officer walked through the electromagnetic detector as part of the demo, which caught his service gun on the left side of his body.

The scanners are mobile and can be deployed to any subway system across the five boroughs. NYPD Public Information Officer Tarik Sheppard told PIX11 News that the NYPD will start off testing in one location and go from there.

“It will be for a few hours and it will be the same hours in which we are doing a bag check there,” Sheppard said. “So it’s not replacing our police officers or anything like that, it’s just another tool in the toolbox.”

The Legal Aid Society argued that the technology is an invasion of privacy . Some City Council members said that funds that could be used on mental health were misguided to fund the scanners.

Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018 . She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here .

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