Suffolk District Attorney Ray Tierney hopes to give the county’s ShotSpotter gunshot detection program a second chance to stop gun violence.

Suffolk County had withdrawn funding for the technology in 2019 after questions about its effectiveness, but Tierney made remarks Thursday calling for money to fund the program.

The Suffolk District Attorney says there has been an increase in shootings every year since funding was withdrawn. He says as a DA in Brooklyn, there were signs it was working.

The ShotSpotter program has cameras that detect the sound of gunshots, record the area, and can now send an alert and location to an app that can be pushed directly to officers.

There are calls against returning the program because they would be installed in certain communities that are predominantly people of color.

Rachel Hu of the Long Island Socialism and Liberation Party says it has already been proven that increasing technology and increasing surveillance of black and brown communities does not reduce crime.

She says the money could be put to better use elsewhere.

“We have to invest in our community, invest in programs that we know work,” Hu said. “Violence interruption programs work.”

The community in which the cameras would be installed includes North Amityville, Wyandanch, Brentwood, Bay Shore, Central Islip, North Bellport, Coram and Mastic/Shirley.

Tierney says the ray accounts for 50% of shootings in Suffolk County.

“There are families living there, children going to school there and we want to keep those people safe,” Tierney said.

Some students say they support an increased effort to tackle gun crimes.

“If anything, this is just a step forward in public safety,” said Eloy Mendez-Vargas of Brentwood High School.

It would cost between $1.3 and $1.8 million.

If funding is approved by the legislature, it would take about a month to install the cameras.