Is technology making policing easier or is it invading privacy, rights of accused?
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ByBrickfield & Donahue
Predictive policing sounds like something out of a movie. The movie “Minority
Report” is about police being able to predict crimes before they
happen, essentially eliminating all criminal activity. While the level
of predictive action described in that movie is still very much science
fiction, new technology is being developed to help police become more
efficient, and it might interfere with the rights of the accused.
Motorola Solutions and Ford, along with some other companies, have developed
a prototype police car with a lot of new technology. This technology will
reportedly allow police to monitor license plates of passing cars, setting
off an alarm if the computer recognizes the plate as a potential suspect
for a crime. Computer systems in the car could also be enabled to start
paperwork on producing a citation before an officer even leaves the vehicle
in a traffic stop.
This might sound like fun new technology for police to play with, but it
could be devastating to a person’s rights. Officers could be handing
out citations without speaking to the people they are pulling over, and
police could be pulling over people if the computer mistakenly recognizes
a person’s license plate.
Technology such as license plate recognition has already been reported
in some parts of the country. People should understand their rights if
they are ever pulled over for an alleged crime. They might be wise to
speak with an experienced attorney who can help them navigate the legal system.
Source: Venture Beat, “Motorola’s futuristic police car is loaded with computers and cameras,” Dean Takahashi, Oct. 22, 2012
-Please visit our website to learn more about criminal defense. Our law
firm can handle cases in which a person’s rights have been violated.
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