Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
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Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
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Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#2Unconscious racial bias comes up a lot in these issues. Yet I am at a loss to see a mechanism by which we could even begin to remedy it. What steps could proposed programs take?
Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#3http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Betteridge%27s_law_of_headlines
not being snarky; i think this one is a clear 'No.'
Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#4cute.
Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#5Unconscious racial bias comes up a lot in these issues. Yet I am at a loss to see a mechanism by which we could even begin to remedy it. What steps could proposed programs take?
nice try, hitler. no, we're not going to eliminate all other races just so you don't have to feel guilty about your own ignorance. oh wait, that's what everyone wants? well, i guess that's democracy. welcome to WW3. your drone pilot station is D12-7B. please let your commander know when you need a new drone or an ammo reload. lunch is 11-2.
Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#6Unconscious racial bias comes up a lot in these issues. Yet I am at a loss to see a mechanism by which we could even begin to remedy it. What steps could proposed programs take?
Lots of ideas come to mind. Probably all bad ideas, but ideas nonetheless:
* Judges and juries are only allowed to be the same race as the defendant.
* Increase/decrease the sentencing guidelines by X% for a certain race. 20 years max for a certain offense for Race Y, 15 years max for Race Z.
* Preferentially give better public defenders to people of certain races, or maybe just give them money to hire non-public defenders.
* Pick some small percentage of cases, say 5%. For people of Race Z, just let them go free 5% of the time. Don't even have a trial.
* Give nicer prison accommodations to people based on race. Similarly, make early release requirements less stringent for people based on race.
* For people of the privileged race, randomly arrest some innocent ones and try your best to pin the crime on them.
Like I said, these are all bad ideas, but they would counteract unconscious racial bias.
Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#7Unconscious racial bias comes up a lot in these issues. Yet I am at a loss to see a mechanism by which we could even begin to remedy it. What steps could proposed programs take?
If we accept that unconscious bias is a fact, the only real solution is to eliminate the possibility for unconscious bias.
To fully do this, you'd need an environment in which all parties are mutually identity-blind. Some kind of virtual courtroom where everyone assumes a "neutral" avatar and speaks through a synthesized voice (again, "neutral") might approximate this.
How would you get there from here? First, you'd need a prototype and substantial basic research - not within the criminal justice system - supporting up the hypothesis that this reduces bias. Next, you'd need to beef up security, accessibility, etc. before slogging through the procurement process. You'd then test it on a small handful of actual cases, thereby gathering data to support a wider rollout.
In the meantime: not sure. The very least we could do would be to make sure everyone involved receives some "unconscious bias training" (e.g. make it a mandatory part of court proceedings).
Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#8Unconscious racial bias comes up a lot in these issues. Yet I am at a loss to see a mechanism by which we could even begin to remedy it. What steps could proposed programs take?
Lots of ideas come to mind. Probably all bad ideas, but ideas nonetheless: * Judges and juries are only allowed to be the same race as the defendant. * Increase/decrease the sentencing guidelines by X% for a certain race. 20 years max for a certain offense for Race Y, 15 years max for Race Z. * Preferentially give better public defenders to people of certain races, or maybe just give them money to hire non-public def…
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."
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I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.
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Except for black people... who are innocent without capable of being guilty. And Chinese who deserve a 10% increase in jail-time for being better at math. White people deserve a minimum sentence of 5 years, hard labor, for millenia of whiteprivildge.
Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#9Unconscious racial bias comes up a lot in these issues. Yet I am at a loss to see a mechanism by which we could even begin to remedy it. What steps could proposed programs take?
Lots of ideas come to mind. Probably all bad ideas, but ideas nonetheless: * Judges and juries are only allowed to be the same race as the defendant. * Increase/decrease the sentencing guidelines by X% for a certain race. 20 years max for a certain offense for Race Y, 15 years max for Race Z. * Preferentially give better public defenders to people of certain races, or maybe just give them money to hire non-public def…
> Judges and juries are only allowed to be the same race as the defendant.
So if a white cop shoots a black person and is arrested for it, the judge and jury should all be white? Sounds about right.
They do say "jury of your peers", so a jury of white cops would be ideal in this case.
Re: Can We Reduce Bias in Criminal Justice?
#10Unconscious racial bias comes up a lot in these issues. Yet I am at a loss to see a mechanism by which we could even begin to remedy it. What steps could proposed programs take?
If we accept that unconscious bias is a fact, the only real solution is to eliminate the possibility for unconscious bias. To fully do this, you'd need an environment in which all parties are mutually identity-blind. Some kind of virtual courtroom where everyone assumes a "neutral" avatar and speaks through a synthesized voice (again, "neutral") might approximate this. How would you get there from here? First, you'd…
Part of the point of jury-of-your-peers trials is so people can use their biases to make subjective decisions based on their life experience. The tone/inflection/appearance of the defendant plays into all of that. What you are suggesting would eliminate that. Why have juries at all, then?