The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) is facing criticism from a group of lawmakers who believe that state and local police agencies are using federal grants to purchase AI-based policing tools that are inaccurate and exacerbate biases. Seven members of Congress wrote a letter to the DOJ expressing their concerns and calling for a halt to all grants until the department can ensure that predictive policing systems are not used in a discriminatory manner. The DOJ previously admitted that it had not been tracking whether police departments were using grant funding to purchase such tools.
The lawmakers, led by Senator Ron Wyden, argue that the DOJ is legally obligated to periodically review grant recipients’ compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. They emphasize that the DOJ is prohibited from funding programs that discriminate based on race, ethnicity, or national origin, regardless of whether the discrimination is intentional or not. Independent investigations have found that predictive policing tools trained on historical crime data often perpetuate long-held biases and result in over-policing of predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods.
The lawmakers’ concerns stem from the lack of transparency and accountability in the DOJ’s grant program. They argue that the DOJ has not conducted investigations into whether departments awarded grants have purchased discriminatory policing software. The information obtained so far by the lawmakers has only increased their worries about the program. They are calling for a halt to all grants for predictive policing systems until the DOJ can ensure that the recipients will not use these tools in a way that has a discriminatory impact.
The use of AI-based policing tools has been a topic of debate and scrutiny in recent years. Critics argue that these tools can perpetuate biases and lead to unfair targeting of certain communities. The lawmakers’ letter highlights the need for the DOJ to address these concerns and take proactive steps to ensure that federal grants are not being used to fund discriminatory policing practices. Transparency, accountability, and the avoidance of biased outcomes should be prioritized in the deployment of AI in law enforcement.
