Milwaukee police ban facial recognition technology after community pushback

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) - Milwaukee police are banning facial recognition technology, backing away from earlier plans after hours of intense public criticism at Thursday's Fire and Police Commission meeting.

Chief Jeffrey Norman issued a department-wide moratorium making the ban effective immediately. The decision comes after dozens of residents voiced concerns about privacy, surveillance, and racial bias.

After announcing plans to use facial recognition software, Milwaukee police now say public trust matters more than the technology itself.

Some in law enforcement say the move goes too far.

“A total ban is kind of shortsighted,” said Eric Draeger, a former MPD detective and detective instructor.

The department had planned to partner with a tech company to share more than 2.5 million pieces of data, including mugshots and photos. That plan drew sharp criticism from community advocates during Thursday night’s meeting.

“Milwaukee’s residents should not be treated as a data set. We should not pay with our privacy. We should not pay with our rights. And we should not pay with our safety,” said Bianca Shaw, state director of Common Cause Wisconsin.

Still, some argue facial recognition technology could help police solve violent crimes.

“It causes a lot of cases to get solved. It’s another tool we’re now not going to have. That facial recognition can potentially solve homicides, sexual assaults, robberies,” said Alex Ayala, president of the Milwaukee Police Association.

Draeger says policy - not a full ban - could strike a better balance.

“I think with good policy written with civil liberties in mind you have a good chance to solve more crimes with this technology,” he said.

Outside experts say the department made the right call by stepping back.

The Policing Project at NYU released a statement saying: “We are glad the Milwaukee Police Department is taking seriously the concerns of its community and the potential harms of using facial recognition technology without any policy in place.”

MPD says they’ll continue working with the Fire and Police Commission, city leaders, and the community to craft a formal policy but until then, facial recognition technology is officially off the table in Milwaukee.