The Tenth Amendment Center’s Mike Maharrey reports that the New Hampshire Legislature has approved a bill that would “effectively ban warrantless police surveillance using facial recognition in the state.”
The bill awaits Gov. Chris Sununu’s action.
Like many other state and local bans on warrantless facial recognition use, the bipartisan drive behind the New Hampshire bill is to protect individual privacy and require law enforcement to use the accepted, constitutional methods for gathering sensitive information in criminal cases.
But law enforcement, loathe to accept any impediments to its powers—especially warrants—has found a way to circumvent such bans: ask a neighboring law enforcement agency that isn’t under a local ban to gather the information for them.
As the Washington Post reports, police departments in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, California used just such a workaround:
Officers in Austin and San Francisco — two of the largest cities where police are banned from using the technology — have repeatedly asked police in neighboring towns to run photos of criminal suspects through their facial recognition programs, according to a Washington Post review of police documents.
Naturally, the top brass is shocked, shocked to find such behavior going on in their departments:
SFPD spokesman Evan Sernoffsky said these requests violated the city ordinance and were not authorized by the department, but the agency faced no consequences from the city. He declined to say whether officers were disciplined because those would be personnel matters.
And in Austin…
A spokeswoman for the Austin Police Department said these uses of facial recognition were never authorized by department or city officials. She said the department would review the cases for potential violations of city rules.
Of course, they will.
As Techdirt’s Tim Cushing writes, the overall number of violations is likely very small. But that doesn’t make it right, or any less serious. The localities that have passed facial recognition bans need to take every violation seriously:
…demanding accountability and transparency from the law enforcement agencies they oversee. If they’re assuming cops won’t break laws they don’t like, they’re stupider than the cops they’re overseeing and twice as stupid as cops think their overseers are. If you can’t keep this from happening, why even bother passing laws?
Why, indeed.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
Norman Leahy has written about national and Virginia politics for more than 30 years with outlets ranging from The Washington Post to BearingDrift.com. A consulting writer, editor, recovering think tank executive and campaign operative, Norman lives in Virginia.
Norman Leahy has written about national and Virginia politics for more than 30 years with outlets ranging from The Washington Post to BearingDrift.com. A consulting writer, editor, recovering think tank executive and campaign operative, Norman lives in Virginia.
A Canadian same-sex couple is suing the surrogate who carried their now 2-year-old son
At American Liberty News, we eschew the mainstream media’s tightly controlled narrative to provide our readers with real news, real insights, and the means to take action. We seek out insightful coverage – and partner with knowledgeable and experienced people and organizations to bring you the information and insight our readers demand.
We humbly seek to provide the tools and information necessary for our readers to decide for themselves what is true and what is right.
New Hampshire Legislators Target New Age Surveillance Methods
The Tenth Amendment Center’s Mike Maharrey reports that the New Hampshire Legislature has approved a bill that would “effectively ban warrantless police surveillance using facial recognition in the state.”
The bill awaits Gov. Chris Sununu’s action.
Like many other state and local bans on warrantless facial recognition use, the bipartisan drive behind the New Hampshire bill is to protect individual privacy and require law enforcement to use the accepted, constitutional methods for gathering sensitive information in criminal cases.
Also known as “getting a warrant.”
But law enforcement, loathe to accept any impediments to its powers—especially warrants—has found a way to circumvent such bans: ask a neighboring law enforcement agency that isn’t under a local ban to gather the information for them.
As the Washington Post reports, police departments in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, California used just such a workaround:
Naturally, the top brass is shocked, shocked to find such behavior going on in their departments:
And in Austin…
Of course, they will.
As Techdirt’s Tim Cushing writes, the overall number of violations is likely very small. But that doesn’t make it right, or any less serious. The localities that have passed facial recognition bans need to take every violation seriously:
Why, indeed.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
READ NEXT: Rubio’s Tariff Flip-Flop Is Indicative Of Republican Party’s Populist Swing
Norman Leahy
Norman Leahy has written about national and Virginia politics for more than 30 years with outlets ranging from The Washington Post to BearingDrift.com. A consulting writer, editor, recovering think tank executive and campaign operative, Norman lives in Virginia.
Norman Leahy
Norman Leahy has written about national and Virginia politics for more than 30 years with outlets ranging from The Washington Post to BearingDrift.com. A consulting writer, editor, recovering think tank executive and campaign operative, Norman lives in Virginia.
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