Legal Aid Society Urges Investigation into NYPD’s Facial Recognition Use
New York City’s largest group of public defenders, the Legal Aid Society, has called for an investigation into the NYPD’s use of facial recognition technology, citing multiple instances of false arrests. In a letter sent this week to the NYPD’s Office of the Inspector General, the society highlighted allegations of the police department violating its own policies regarding the application of this controversial technology.
The NYPD has utilized facial recognition technology for several years, despite ongoing opposition from advocates and experts who raise concerns about its reliability and potential for biased outcomes. The Innocence Project has documented at least six cases in which Black individuals were misidentified and wrongfully accused of crimes due to this technology.
Concerns Over Misuse and Accountability
Growing apprehensions regarding the use of facial recognition led the New York City Council to implement new standards governing its application by law enforcement. Recently, The New York Times reported on an incident where the NYPD improperly identified and arrested an individual for a crime he did not commit. The Legal Aid Society contends that such misuses extend beyond isolated incidents, alleging that the department has used facial recognition matches obtained from external databases, contravening its own guidelines.
Diane Akerman, a staff attorney with Legal Aid’s digital forensics unit, expressed profound distrust in the NYPD’s handling of this technology. “The NYPD cannot be trusted to use it in a way that does not harm New Yorkers,” she stated. “This is not a new issue; we now have specific incidents that demonstrate the department ignoring its own protocols, which has resulted in wrongful arrests.”
The Legal Aid Society has also requested that Jeanene Barrett, the inspector general for the NYPD, publish the findings of the investigation in the next annual audit. Akerman noted that while the timeline for a response remains uncertain, she believes the matter will receive attention.
NYPD’s Defense of Technology Usage
NYPD officials maintain that facial recognition technology is a crucial tool for the department and others across the United States, asserting that it is not used to establish probable cause or effectuate arrests. They claim it has aided in resolving multiple high-profile violent cases, although they emphasize that it is never the sole basis for an arrest.
In a statement, the Department of Investigation confirmed that it has received the Legal Aid Society’s letter and is currently reviewing its contents. The outcome of this investigation may have significant implications not only for the NYPD but also for the broader discourse on the use of facial recognition technology in policing.
