Politech facecam archive: http://www.politechbot.com/cgi-bin/politech.cgi?name=facecam --- From: Anonymous User <anonymousat_private> To: declanat_private Subject: WashTimes: Restraints shelved on facial-recognition Date: Thu, 7 Mar 2002 14:56:28 +0000 (UTC) From The Washington Times, available online at: http://www.washingtontimes.com/metro/20020305-14688454.htm Restraints shelved on facial-recognition By Daniel F. Drummond THE WASHINGTON TIMES March 5, 2002 RICHMOND - A bill that would have required a judge's approval to use facial-recognition software was shelved yesterday by a Senate panel, leaving localities unchecked in implementing the technology. Virginia Beach plans to start using the software to find felons and runaways beginning May 31, but House Majority Leader Delegate H. Morgan Griffith said better safeguards are needed to ensure the technology is not abused. "The technology scares me," Mr. Griffith, Salem Republican and sponsor of the bill, told the Senate Courts of Justice Committee. [...] Mr. Griffith said the bill will come up during next year's General Assembly session. It passed the House of Delegates three weeks ago in a 74-25 vote. [...] Mr. Griffith said surveillance cameras have proliferated recently, and cited the rooftop cameras installed in the District after September 11. His bill, he said, would curb that proliferation. But the chairman of the committee, Sen. Kenneth W. Stolle, said he did not see anything wrong with the technology. "Why should we want to limit law enforcement's access to those databases?" asked Mr. Stolle, a Republican from Virginia Beach and former police officer there. Mr. Stolle said the facial-recognition technology enables police to instantly match criminals to databases that contain their criminal records. "It's public record," Mr. Stolle said. [...] ------------------------------------------------------------------------- POLITECH -- Declan McCullagh's politics and technology mailing list You may redistribute this message freely if you include this notice. Declan McCullagh's photographs are at http://www.mccullagh.org/ To subscribe to Politech: http://www.politechbot.com/info/subscribe.html This message is archived at http://www.politechbot.com/ -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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