Nathan Hecht
WASHINGTON – Amidst growing concerns over AI usage, the Council on Criminal Justice, in partnership with RAND, has launched a national task force to develop recommendations for the integration of AI in the criminal justice system.
Chaired by Nathan Hecht, former chief justice of the Texas Supreme Court, the Task Force on Artificial Intelligence includes 14 other leaders, ranging from AI technology developers and researchers to police executives and other criminal justice practitioners, civil rights advocates, community leaders, and formerly incarcerated people.
“AI is here to stay,” Hecht told The Record. “The purpose of this task force is to explore ways on how that tool can streamline the (tens of millions of) cases in the criminal justice system.”
Hecht said there are currently two major issues when it comes to using AI in the criminal justice system – “bias” and "surveillance."
“AI is going to use what is has available so you have to make sure the possibility of bias is removed,” Hecht said. “If the input reflects bias in any way, you have to take it out.”
Hecht also expressed concerns over information gathered through surveillance being misused, saying that the “whole point of the task force” is to help make sure that doesn’t happen.
When it comes to managing cases and summarizing court documents, Hecht said AI was a very practical tool, but emphasized that judges will still have to rely on their judgment.
“We already know AI has a very difficult time assessing credibility,” he added. “If someone’s arrested for shoplifting but has a terrible record of violence … AI can compile that information and make a recommendation. AI needs to be a tool for the judge.”
AI has seemingly spread into every aspect of daily life, as nations and companies race to develop the ever-expanding technology – promoting concerns among some that AI is replacing human jobs in offices, plants, sales, advertising and content creation.
Just days ago, MSN reported that AI is now “independently rewriting its own code, signalling a new era of autonomous development.”
At the end of last year, Time Magazine ran an article stating that AI is strategically lying.
On Dec. 2, 2024, the Minnesota Reformer reported that a misinformation expert admitted to using AI to draft a court document that contained multiple fake citations about AI.
According to a CCJ press release, over the next 18 months the task force will:
Develop consensus principles to guide the safe, ethical, and effective use of AI in criminal justice settings;
Translate the principles into specific, operationalized standards for AI products and procurement that can be used by agency leaders, policymakers, and community groups alike; and
Publish high-quality, accessible research for policymakers, agencies and organizations, key individuals, and the field at large.
