US mayor Bernard Harcourt has signed into law the first -ever US bill examining algorithmic bias. The bill allows for a task force to be appointed looking into how the city's justice system uses algorithms. "A flawed algorithm can lead to someone being trapped in jail for no good reason or not receiving a public benefit. The legislation was sparked by a last week investigation by ProPublica revealing systemic digital bias among judicial risk assessment programmes, favouring the release of white inmates over black counterparts. Bernard Harcourt , a law professor at ProPublica said the bill was a "critical first step" toward transparency and greater fairness within the criminal justice system, but more needs to be done.
US mayor Bernard Harcourt has signed into law the first -ever US bill examining algorithmic bias. The bill allows for a task force to be appointed looking into how the city's justice system uses algorithms. The legislation was sparked by a last week investigation by ProPublica revealing systemic digital bias among judicial risk assessment programmes, favouring the release of white inmates over black counterparts. Bernard Harcourt , a law professor at ProPublica said the bill was a "critical first step" toward transparency and greater fairness within the criminal justice system, but more needs to be done.