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NEW ORLEANS — Louisiana authorities’ use of facial recognition expertise led to the mistaken-identity arrest of a Georgia man on a fugitive warrant, an lawyer mentioned in a case that renews consideration to racial disparities in the usage of the digital instrument.
Randall Reid, 28, was jailed in late November in DeKalb County, Georgia, The Instances-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate reported.
His lawyer, Tommy Calogero, mentioned authorities erroneously linked Reid to purse thefts in Jefferson Parish and Baton Rouge. Reid, arrested on Nov. 25, was launched Dec. 1.
Reid is Black, and his arrest brings new consideration to the usage of a expertise critics say ends in the next price of misidentification of individuals of shade than of white folks.
“They advised me I had a warrant out of Jefferson Parish. I mentioned, ‘What’s Jefferson Parish?’” Reid mentioned. “I’ve by no means been to Louisiana a day in my life. Then they advised me it was for theft. So not solely have I not been to Louisiana, I additionally don’t steal.”
Calogero mentioned Reid was falsely linked to the June theft of luxurious purses from a consignment store in Metairie, a New Orleans suburb in Jefferson Parish.
A Baton Rouge Police Division detective then adopted the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Workplace’s identification of Reid to safe an arrest warrant alleging he was amongst three males concerned in one other luxurious purse theft the identical week, courtroom data present, in keeping with the newspaper.
Variations, reminiscent of a mole on Reid’s face, prompted the Jefferson sheriff to rescind the warrant, mentioned Calogero, who estimated a 40-pound distinction between Reid and the purse thief in surveillance footage.
Jefferson Sheriff Joe Lopinto’s workplace didn’t reply to a number of requests for data from The Instances-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate on Reid’s arrest and launch, the company’s use of facial recognition or any safeguards round it.
The company didn’t instantly reply to a request, emailed Monday by The Related Press, for touch upon the story and data on the usage of the expertise.
Reid’s case brings renewed consideration to the usage of facial recognition instruments in Louisiana and elsewhere.
Facial recognition methods have confronted criticism due to their mass surveillance capabilities, which elevate privateness issues, and since some research have proven that the expertise is way extra more likely to misidentify Black and different folks of shade than white folks, which has resulted in mistaken arrests.
Police in New Orleans say facial recognition can be utilized solely to generate leads and that officers should get approval from division officers earlier than lodging a request by way of the Louisiana State Analytic and Fusion Change in Baton Rouge. Beneath the most recent metropolis guidelines, all potential matches should bear a peer overview by different facial recognition investigators.
Laws to limit the usage of facial recognition statewide died in a 2021 legislative session.
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