Incident 74: Detroit Police Wrongfully Arrested Black Man Due To Faulty FRT
Entities
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CSET Taxonomy Classifications
Taxonomy DetailsFull Description
In June 2020, the Detroit Police Department wrongfully arrested Robert Julian-Borchak Williams after facial recognition techonology provided by DataWorks Plus had mistaken Williams for a black man who was recorded on a CCTV camera stealing. This incident is cited as an instance where facial recognition continues to possess racial bias, especially towards the Black and Asian population.
Short Description
The Detroit Police Department wrongfully arrest a black man due to its faulty facial recognition program provided by Dataworks Plus.
Severity
Moderate
Harm Distribution Basis
Race
Harm Type
Harm to civil liberties
AI System Description
DataWorks Plus facial recognition software was provided to the Detroit Police Department and focuses on biometrics storage and matching, including fingerprints, palm prints, irises, tattoos, and mugshots.
System Developer
DataWorks Plus
Sector of Deployment
Public administration and defence
Relevant AI functions
Perception, Cognition, Action
AI Techniques
facial recognition, machine learning, environmental sensing
AI Applications
Facial recognition, environmental sensing, biometrics, image recognition, speech recognition
Location
United States (Detroit, Michigan)
Named Entities
Detroit Police Department, DataWorks Plus
Technology Purveyor
DataWorks Plus
Beginning Date
06/2020
Ending Date
06/2020
Near Miss
Harm caused
Intent
Accident
Lives Lost
No
Data Inputs
biometrics, images, camera footage
GMF Taxonomy Classifications
Taxonomy DetailsKnown AI Goal
Face Recognition
Known AI Technology
Face Detection
Potential AI Technology
Convolutional Neural Network, Distributional Learning
Potential AI Technical Failure
Dataset Imbalance, Generalization Failure, Underfitting, Covariate Shift
Incident Reports
Reports Timeline
Detroit police wrongfully arrested Robert Julian-Borchak Williams in January 2020 for a shoplifting incident that had taken place two years earlier. Even though Williams had nothing to do with the incident, facial recognition technology use…
"Note: In response to this article, the Wayne County prosecutor’s office said that Robert Julian-Borchak Williams could have the case and his fingerprint data expunged. “We apologize,” the prosecutor, Kym L. Worthy, said in a statement, add…
Updated 9:05 p.m. ET Wednesday
Police in Detroit were trying to figure out who stole five watches from a Shinola retail store. Authorities say the thief took off with an estimated $3,800 worth of merchandise.
Investigators pulled a security…
On Wednesday morning, the ACLU announced that it was filing a complaint against the Detroit Police Department on behalf of Robert Williams, a Black Michigan resident whom the group said is one of the first people falsely arrested due to fac…
Detroit police have used highly unreliable facial recognition technology almost exclusively against Black people so far in 2020, according to the Detroit Police Department’s own statistics. The department’s use of the technology gained nati…
Racial bias and facial recognition. Black man in New Jersey arrested by police and spends ten days in jail after false face recognition match
Accuracy and racial bias concerns about facial recognition technology continue with the news of a …
Teaneck just banned facial recognition technology for police. Here's why
Show Caption Hide Caption Facial recognition program that works even if you’re wearing a mask A Japanese company says they’ve developed a system that can bypass face c…
A Michigan man has sued Detroit police after he was wrongfully arrested and falsely identified as a shoplifting suspect by the department’s facial recognition software in one of the first lawsuits of its kind to call into question the contr…
Since a Minneapolis police officer killed George Floyd in March 2020 and re-ignited massive Black Lives Matter protests, communities across the country have been re-thinking law enforcement, from granular scrutiny of the ways that police us…
ROBERT WILLIAMS WAS doing yard work with his family one afternoon last August when his daughter Julia said they needed a family meeting immediately. Once everyone was inside the house, the 7-year-old girl closed all the blinds and curtains …
