The Detroit Police Department has settled a lawsuit filed by Robert Julian-Borchak Williams, a black man who was wrongfully arrested in January 2020 based on a flawed facial recognition match.
As a part of the settlement, the Detroit Police Department has agreed to implement latest policies governing using facial recognition technology.
They include:
- Prohibiting arrests based solely on facial recognition matches
- Requiring additional evidence beyond facial recognition before including a suspect in a photograph lineup
- Mandating officer training on the constraints and risks of facial recognition technology
- Conducting an audit of all cases since 2017 where facial recognition was used to acquire an arrest warrant
The incident began in October 2018 when a person shoplifted five watches from a Shinola store in Detroit.
Investigators used a still image from the shop’s surveillance video. They ran it through the Detroit Police Department’s facial recognition system, incorrectly matching the suspect to Williams’ driver’s license photo.
Despite the clear differences between Williams and the suspect, investigators proceeded with the arrest.
During interrogation, Williams held the surveillance image next to his face, asking the detectives, “You think all Black men look alike?”
The detectives eventually acknowledged the error, with one admitting, “I assume the pc got it improper.”
Williams spent some 30 hours in jail and has since struggled with the emotional trauma of the experience.
“My wife and young daughters had to look at helplessly as I used to be arrested for against the law I didn’t commit and by the point I got home from jail, I had already missed my youngest losing her first tooth and my eldest couldn’t even bear to have a look at my picture. Even now, years later, it still brings them to tears when they give thought to it,” Williams said.
“The scariest part is that what happened to me could have happened to anyone.”
A significant first step
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), representing Williams within the lawsuit, hailed the settlement as a noteworthy step towards greater accountability and oversight in facial recognition technology.
The organization explained that the brand new policies are among the many strictest within the nation and will function a model for other law enforcement agencies.
The settlement also features a $1,000 payment to Williams, who spent 30 hours in jail and suffered emotional distress because of this of the wrongful arrest.
Studies have consistently shown that these systems usually tend to misidentify people of color, particularly Black individuals, than white people.
This bias could be attributed to aspects similar to the dearth of diversity within the datasets used to coach facial recognition algorithms and the technology’s inherent limitations.
AI-powered policing is increasing, including AI surveillance in public spaces, similar to the deployment of live facial recognition cameras by UK police.
The settlement reached by the Detroit Police Department within the Robert Julian-Borchak Williams case is simply a primary step.
Comprehensive regulation and oversight of facial recognition technology on the federal level are vital to be sure that these systems are used responsibly, especially when the chance of bias is at its highest.
