The Rise of Big Data Policing: Surveillance, Race, and the Future of Law Enforcement
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| Anteprima |
Winner,
2018 Law & Legal Studies PROSE Award The consequences of big data
and algorithm-driven policing and its impact on law enforcement In a
high-tech command center in downtown Los Angeles, a digital map lights
up with 911 calls, television monitors track breaking news stories,
surveillance cameras sweep the streets, and rows of networked computers
link analysts and police officers to a wealth of law enforcement
intelligence. This is just a glimpse into a future where software
predicts future crimes, algorithms generate virtual “most-wanted” lists,
and databanks collect personal and biometric information. The Rise of
Big Data Policing introduces the cutting-edge technology that is
changing how the police do their jobs and shows why it is more important
than ever that citizens understand the far-reaching consequences of big
data surveillance as a law enforcement tool. Andrew Guthrie Ferguson
reveals how these new technologies —viewed as race-neutral and
objective—have been eagerly adopted by police departments hoping to
distance themselves from claims of racial bias and unconstitutional
practices. After a series of high-profile police shootings and federal
investigations into systemic police misconduct, and in an era of law
enforcement budget cutbacks, data-driven policing has been billed as a
way to “turn the page” on racial bias. But behind the data are real
people, and difficult questions remain about racial discrimination and
the potential to distort constitutional protections. In this first book
on big data policing, Ferguson offers an examination of how new
technologies will alter the who, where, when and how we police. These
new technologies also offer data-driven methods to improve police
accountability and to remedy the underlying socio-economic risk factors
that encourage crime. The Rise of Big Data Policing is a must read for
anyone concerned with how technology will revolutionize law enforcement
and its potential threat to the security, privacy, and constitutional
rights of citizens. Read an excerpt and interview with Andrew Guthrie
Ferguson in The Economist.
