by Juliette Rihl
Pittsburgh City Council voted Tuesday to regulate the use of facial recognition and predictive policing technologies by city entities, including the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police [PBP]. The legislation requires city council approval of such technologies before they are acquired or used, except in “an emergency situation.”
Eight city council members approved the bill, with Councilman Anthony Coghill, who represents South Pittsburgh neighborhoods like Beechview and Brookline, abstaining because he said he was “not up to speed” on the bill and its recent amendments.
The legislation references the race, gender and age biases and potential inaccuracy for which facial recognition technology has been widely criticized. “[S]ome of these technologies have the potential to endanger the civil rights and civil liberties of innocent individuals, which means it is incumbent on governments to regulate, scrutinize, and vet these technologies before they can be implemented,” the bill reads.
Though he voted to approve the bill, Councilman Rev. Ricky Burgess, who represents neighborhoods including East Liberty and Homewood, called it “a Pinocchio bill” and “irrelevant.”
“Right now, today, the City of Pittsburgh is using facial recognition through the state of Pennsylvania, and this bill does not stop it,” he said, referring to the statewide system JNET, which is available to all law enforcement agencies in the state. That system provides a photo database with facial recognition capabilities that includes PennDOT driver’s license photos, prison photos and more. The bill does not apply to JNET.
Despite having a policy stating that PBP “does not use facial recognition software or programs,” the bureau used facial recognition through JNET to identify a suspect of alleged crimes linked to a Black Lives Matter protest in June, according to court records. The bureau, however, has not purchased any commercial facial recognition software, according to spokesperson Cara Cruz.
Pittsburgh City Council discusses facial recognition during a Sept. 22, 2020 meeting, held remotely. (Screenshot from Zoom)
READ ENTIRE ARTICLE AT:
Pittsburgh City Council votes to regulate facial recognition and predictive policing
About Post Author
