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New Robotic Cops Patrolling in NYC

Loaded on Sept. 1, 2023 by Jordan Arizmendi published in Criminal Legal News September, 2023, page 35
Filed under: Police, Electronic Surveillance. Location: New York.

by Jordan Arizmendi

Move over Terminator, the newest crop of law enforcement agents are New York City’s futuristic robots that have been given the beat of Times Square as well as the city subways.

This is not the first time that NYPD has allowed robots to perform gritty police work. In 2021, the Boston Dynamic DigiDog, galloped around the city on its four metallic legs in pursuit of criminal violations. However, back then, the DigiDog really creeped out a lot of New Yorkers, so the robotic canines were suspended from duty.

The latest robotic cops on the beat are the K5 Autonomous Security Robot that is built by Knightscope. This egg-shaped robot, nicknamed “SnitchBOT” is packed with a dozen microphones, a 360-degree camera, and a license-plate reader.

Anyone brazen enough to defile, destroy, or damage the robots will be charged with assaulting an officer. The technology comes at a hefty price – “SnitchBOT” costs $12,250 for a seven-month rental. The money will be paid with NYPD forfeiture funds.

Those that may be nervous about machine’s destruction of man will breathe a sigh of relief once they learn that these new additions to the NYPD do not carry weapons. Their sole responsibility is to record their surroundings and then send these recordings to “real” police officers. They truly earned their “SnitchBOT” street name.

Sources: Nymag.com, Nypost.com

More from this issue:

  1. Geofence Warrants: Little-Known Search Makes Innocent People Suspects Simply for Having a Phone Near a Crime Scene, by Douglas Ankney
  2. What’s ‘Sufficient’ Rehabilitation for Compassionate Release?, by Luke Sommer, James Lockhart
  3. Interrogating a Suspect With an Intellectual Disability Using the Reid Technique: Recipe for a False Confession, by Jo Ellen Nott
  4. Forensic Benefits of a Body Farm Facility, by Jordan Arizmendi
  5. Police Can Get More From Your Phone Than You May Believe, by Michael Thompson
  6. Surveilling AI’s Big Moment, by Michael Thompson
  7. Wyoming Supreme Court Reverses ‘Contempt of Cop’ Conviction Because Police Were Not Lawfully Performing Their Official Duties, by Richard Resch
  8. Sixth Circuit Suppresses Evidence Obtained as a Result of Warrant That Lacked Probable Cause of Criminal Activity in Arson Investigation, by Anthony Accurso
  9. Arizona Blowfly Database Develops Empirical Support for Time of Death Estimation, by Anthony Accurso
  10. California Court of Appeal Reverses Felony Murder Conviction Because Evidence Insufficient to Support Underlying Predicate Felony of Attempted Robbery, by Douglas Ankney
  11. Biased Algorithms Are Still a Problem, by Michael Thompson
  12. Probation Sentences Capped in Minnesota, by Jordan Arizmendi
  13. The Two Faces of the FBI and DOD Facial Recognition Program, by Carlo Difundo
  14. New York Court of Appeals: Constitutional Prohibition Against Restraining Defendant Without Explanation Remains in Force During Announcement of Verdict and Polling of Jurors, by Douglas Ankney
  15. No Discipline for NYPD Officers Who Deface License Plates in Apparent Attempt to Evade Tickets, by Douglas Ankney
  16. Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Casts Nearly 30,000 DUI Convictions in Doubt Due to ‘Egregious Government Misconduct’, by Jordan Arizmendi
  17. New York City’s DNA Gun Crimes Unit Reduces Turnaround Times for Gun Crimes by Half, by Jordan Arizmendi
  18. The Serious Threat of Cell-Site Simulators, by Michael Thompson
  19. Second Circuit Vacates § 924 Convictions Predicated on Attempted Hobbs Act Robbery, by Douglas Ankney
  20. New Study Proposes Biological Reasons May Cause Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, by Jordan Arizmendi
  21. Law Enforcement Using Technology That Accesses Live Video From Any Camera Connected to the Internet, by Jordan Arizmendi
  22. New Service Highlights Cellphone Privacy Issues, by Michael Thompson
  23. Mississippi Ends ‘Dead Zone’, by Jordan Arizmendi
  24. ‘Lab in a Box’ Provides DNA Results in Minutes, by Jordan Arizmendi
  25. Report Finds Older Prisoners in Maryland Are Less Likely to Be Paroled, by Jordan Arizmendi
  26. New Robotic Cops Patrolling in NYC, by Jordan Arizmendi
  27. Supreme Court of California: After Amendments to Three Strikes Law, Courts Retain Concurrent Sentencing Discretion for Qualifying Offenses Committed on Same Occasion or Arising From Same Operative Facts, by Douglas Ankney
  28. New York Court of Appeals: Call Intercepted on Wiretap Not Exempt From Statutory Notice Requirements Simply Because Same Call Captured on Separate, Consensual Recording by Jail, by Anthony Accurso
  29. Fourth Circuit Denies Defendant Faced ‘Classic Penalty Situation’ During Polygraph Questioning While on Supervised Release, by Anthony Accurso
  30. Seventh Circuit: Whether Right to Counsel ‘Attaches’ Is Not Dependent on Defendant’s Appearance at Probable Cause Hearing, by Anthony Accurso
  31. Sixth Circuit Holds Bump Stocks Not Regulated Under Machinegun Statute, by Anthony Accurso
  32. New Jersey Supreme Court: Third-Party’s Apparent Authority to Consent to Search Premises Does Not Extend to Defendant’s Personal Property Located on Premises, by Anthony Accurso
  33. Travis County, Texas, Efforts to Keep Mentally Ill Individuals Out of Jail Face Funding, Infrastructure, and Information Management Challenges, by Jo Ellen Nott
  34. Third Circuit: Pennsylvania Second-Degree Aggravated Assault of a Protected Individual Not a ‘Violent Felony’ Under ACCA, Court Acknowledges ‘Bizarre Result’, by Anthony Accurso
  35. From the Sad but True Files: Police Oppose Laws Prohibiting Cops From Lying to Juveniles During Interrogations, by Douglas Ankney
  36. Colorado Supreme Court Clarifies There Is No Per Se Rule Excluding Self-Serving Hearsay, by Matthew Clarke
  37. Collaborative Project Between Innocence Project and National Registry of Exonerations Produces Interim Report Reconciling Data Coding Discrepancies, by Casey Bastian
  38. New Montana Law Bans Warrantless Facial Recognition Surveillance, by Jordan Arizmendi
  39. News in Brief
  40. ‘Silos’ Can Keep Police Departments From Knowledge of Extent of Police Abuse and Consequences of That Abuse, by Matthew Clarke

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