An independent ethics panel has praised Leicestershire Police for its “innovative” Facial Recognition database as a crime cutting tool.
Members of the Ethics, Integrity and Complaints Committee, set up by the area’s Police and Crime Commissioner Sir Clive Loader earlier this year, have examined the database which the Force has been trialing since May 2013.
The system works by the Force uploading all images taken of detainees in custody into the NeoFace database. Images from a crime scene (for example CCTV images) are then checked against the database and if a positive match is found this will be flagged up within three seconds.
The Force believes it has been highly effective in combating crime, and during a demonstration to the committee, officers showed members how the system has helped to catch offenders, find missing people and recover illegal drugs.
Officers demonstrating the system also explained to the committee that the system is part of the identification process only and that data isn’t used as formal evidence in ongoing proceedings. The committee also heard that the speed at which NeoFace can bring up a match not only greatly benefitted investigating officers but also reduced the potential need to arrest a number of people in order to identify a suspect.
During its formal meeting last Friday (4 December) afternoon, following the demonstration, the committee described the system as “innovative” and praised the force for employing technology to detect crime.
Committee Chair Professor Cillian Ryan, economist and Pro Vice-Chancellor Dean of the Faculty of Business Law De Montfort University, said it was “a wonderful asset and we welcome the innovation being displayed by the Force to protect the people of Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.”
The committee expressed some concern that the database may retain images of people who, having been arrested, were later acquitted in court or against whom proceedings were discontinued. The system conforms with the provisions of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act and all the images on the database are legally held. A national review is currently being conducted into the whole aspect of image retention by the police service.
During the meeting the committee also discussed the latest complaints figures against Leicestershire Police and heard about the steps being taken by the Force to reduce the average time taken to investigate such complaints. The committee welcomed plans by the Force to introduce a new “service recovery” process aimed at addressing complaints the minute they are made.
The Ethics, Integrity and Complaints Committee was established by PCC Sir Clive Loader earlier this year with the power to examine, and advise the Chief Constable about, the conduct of the Police.
The five committee members, who live or work in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland, meet regularly to scrutinise a range of different aspects of behaviour and policing services and their meetings are open to the public. The committee members are:
- Professor Cillian Ryan, (Chair), economist and Pro Vice-Chancellor Dean of the Faculty of Business Law De Montfort University
- Dr Mark Peel, (Deputy Chair), Senior Lecturer, School of Social Work and Research and Consultancy, University of Leicester
- Dr Steven Cammiss Senior Lecturer in Law at the University of Leicester
- Ms Lois Dugmore, Nurse consultant, dual diagnosis, Care quality commission specialist advisor
- Ms Lynne Richards, Head of Fundraising at the National Forest Company
Posted on Monday 9th May 2016