LAW ENFORCEMENT TECHNOLOGY OVERSIGHT RESPONSIBILITIES IN OUR WORLD OF EMERGING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AND SURVEILLANCE SYSTEMS

As Rockland County District Attorney, I believe public safety depends on two things: effective law enforcement and public trust. We cannot have one without the other.

Rockland law enforcement agencies have at their disposal powerful technologies- school bus cameras, Sky Eye helicopters, surveillance cameras, license plate readers, facial recognition systems, digital forensics, drones and artificial intelligence. These increasing ubiquitous tools help solve crimes, protect victims, locate missing persons and prevent wrongful convictions.

But extraordinary technology requires transparency and accountability.

That responsibility to do so belongs, in large part, to our local legislative bodies- the County Legislature, Town boards and Village boards; particularly those who supervise our local law enforcement agencies. 

These County legislative bodies should carefully and constantly review the purchase and use of surveillance technologies, establish clear policies governing their use, requiring transparency and regular public reporting, and ensure that appropriate safeguards and independent oversight protect privacy and constitutional rights.

Elected legislative oversight is not an obstacle to effective law enforcement, it is a foundation for public trust.  These technologies are too powerful and intrusive to be left under any one individual agency and control without independent public oversight.

As artificial intelligence becomes more powerful and commonplace in our lives, public oversight becomes more important. Our policies must demand that these tools assist human judgment- not replace the priorities set by our elected leaders.

As District Attorney, I do not decide what technologies law enforcement agencies purchase or what rules govern their use.  My responsibility is to ensure that evidence is gathered lawfully and ethically, constitutional rights are protected, and convictions are rightfully obtained.

I call upon all Rockland Legislative bodies to exercise their oversight responsibilities to ensure that these surveillance systems are properly used by both public and private entities.  Sound law enforcement is built on public trust, and open and transparent regulations of these surveillance systems will only build strength and confidence in Rockland County law enforcement.