Detroit Woman Files Lawsuit Against City Police for False Arrest Linked to AI Facial Recognition Technology

**Topline: Detroit Woman Sues City After Wrongful Arrest Due to AI Facial Recognition Technology**

A Detroit woman has filed a lawsuit against the city after being wrongfully arrested due to a mistaken identification made by AI facial recognition technology. This incident raises concerns about the accuracy and racist biases of these algorithms.

**Key Facts:**

– Porsha Woodruff, a 32-year-old woman, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for Eastern Michigan, naming Detective LaShauntia Oliver as the individual responsible for negligence in running the AI facial recognition software.

– According to the lawsuit, Oliver used an eight-year-old photo of Woodruff that matched the face seen on a robbery videotape, even though there was a more recent ID photo available. The victim also mistakenly identified Woodruff as the perpetrator based on the same picture shown to them in a lineup.

– The incident occurred in February and attracted public attention on Thursday when Woodruff filed the lawsuit.

– The original robbery case was dropped by the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office on March 6 due to insufficient evidence.

– Woodruff’s arrest, as a Black woman, highlights the concerns surrounding biased AI algorithms that contribute to discrimination in policing.

**Crucial Quote: Detroit Police Chief Responds**

Detroit Police Chief James E. White expressed deep concern about the allegations made in the lawsuit. He stated, “We are taking this matter very seriously, but we cannot comment further at this time due to the need for additional investigation.”

**Key Background:**

Woodruff experienced the wrongful arrest when six police officers showed up at her Detroit home last February. Initially, she thought it was a joke, but soon realized she was being detained. Woodruff instructed her daughters, ages 6 and 12, to go back into the house and inform her fiancé about the situation. The arrest came as a result of an officer using a 2015 photo of Woodruff, taken when she was stopped for driving without a license. Interestingly, the police officers had a more recent photo from Woodruff’s current driving license, but they did not use it to verify the AI facial recognition result. The incident caused Woodruff significant stress, leading to a low heart rate due to dehydration and early contractions.

**Contra: Previous Flaws and Legislative Efforts**

This is not the first case of a flaw in AI facial recognition software used in policing. The Detroit Police Department has previously wrongfully arrested three Black men in 2019 and 2020, with one of them being mistakenly put in jail.

In response to these concerns, U.S. lawmakers introduced the Facial Recognition Act of 2022 in an attempt to regulate the transparency of AI algorithms and address the issues arising from their use.

**Further Reading:**

For more information on this topic, please refer to the following articles:

– “Eight Months Pregnant and Arrested After False Facial Recognition Match” – New York Times
– “Racism And AI: Here’s How It’s Been Criticized For Amplifying Bias” – Forbes