FB pixel

Detroit police change facial recognition procedure as falsely accused woman sues

Detroit police change facial recognition procedure as falsely accused woman sues
 

Police leadership in the U.S. city of Detroit is reacting to a wrongful arrest lawsuit by defending facial recognition software and coming down hard on a detective. The department is also changing its procedural policies for facial recognition use.

In February, an eight-months pregnant woman was arrested and detained in a cell for 11 hours, accused of robbery and carjacking. That woman, Porcha Woodruff, was cleared a month later. She is suing the Detroit Police Department for wrongful arrest and imprisonment.

From the department’s point of view, the problem rests with how police handled a subsequent photo lineup, and policies are being updated.

Woodruff says she was falsely identified by a face biometrics program used by the Detroit police since 2017.

Police Chief James White yesterday held a press conference in which he said that facial recognition was involved in apprehending the plaintiff, but that it did what it was designed to do.

The lead detective in the Woodruff case, who White repeatedly cited in the meeting, knew that witnesses did not report that the carjacker was pregnant. According to the department, the detective did not go back to witnesses about this discrepancy.

Making matters worse, the carjacking victim was shown a photo lineup that included the reference image of Woodruff that the software matched with a photo from a surveillance camera at the scene of the crime.

According to the Detroit Free Press, White said that violates department policies. It is like putting “a suspect’s twin in a lineup.” Doing that can influence a witness’ judgment.

That prohibition stands, but now, two captains have to review request for warrants when facial recognition algorithms are used in the investigation. Also, cops have to use a sequential double-blind lineup. And police involved in an investigation cannot do the lineup procedure.

Detroit has been one of the centers of concern in the United States about the police use of facial recognition.

Related Posts

Article Topics

 |   |   |   |   |   |   |   | 

Latest Biometrics News

 

Oxford program to study DPI impact on social, financial inclusion

Oxford University’s Blavatnik School of Government has announced the establishment of the Oxford Digital Public Infrastructure Research Lab (OxDPI), an…

 

Idemia makes OEM pitch for biometric modules

A recent webinar from Idemia Public Security looks at how original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) can integrate seamless security into devices…

 

ICE wants biometric monitoring devices for alternative to detention program

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a Request for Information (RFI) for biometric monitoring devices as part of its…

 

Biometrics coming to more stadiums with facial recognition tender in NSW

Venues New South Wales (VNSW) has issued a tender for facial recognition systems to be deployed at Stadium Australia (Accor…

 

FinGo supplying vein biometrics to boost gold mining transparency

SMX – a company operating in the so-called circular economy – is collaborating with finger vein biometrics firm FinGo in…

 

Biometric privacy law in Texas close enough to BIPA to protect Match

Just because you live in Illinois and a company has processed your biometrics without getting your informed consent, you may…

Comments

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Most Read This Week

Featured Company

Biometrics Insight, Opinion

Digital ID In-Depth

Biometrics White Papers

Biometrics Events