JusticeTech: AZ wants your DNA, NYPD body cam footage is public + Jobs

Forwarded from a friend? Subscribe!

News

The drum beat for better criminal justice data continues with new research arguing that "more community access to data, particularly court data, is needed to provide insight, transparency, and monitoring for reform initiatives." (Urban) (ht Elizabeth Grossman)

Retired federal judge Richard Posner was joined by others in an amicus brief that argues PACER, the federal judiciary's data portal, should be free in part to support of incarcerated and self-represented peoples. (Hogan Lovells) (ht Kevin Keenan)

UVA, Upturn and HRDAG teamed up and wrote "Pretrial Risk Assessment Tools: A Primer for Judges, Prosecutors, and Defense Attorneys". (MacFound)

It turns out that a lot of machine learning studies can't be replicated, meaning there's a lot of bunk science out there. What this means for criminal justice research and tools is not immediately known. (BBC)

A novel and unsettling law was introduced in Arizona that would require anyone that needs to be fingerprinted for a job to also hand over a DNA sample and pay a $250 processing fee. (Gizmodo) Across the Pacific, China has created a major DNA surveillance network with the help of US experts. (NYT)

Florida prisoners are suing the state for $11 million because the Department of Corrections wiped all their downloaded music when they switched service providers. (Verge)

An appeals court in New York ruled that the NYPD body camera footage is public. (NY Daily News)

Reverse warrants, where police departments try to make Google hand over data about anyone near a crime scene, are back in the news. (Slate)

Virginia legislators claimed a bill to allow appeals from people convicted by junk forensic science was too expensive, so they voted it down. (WaPo)

Jobs
The Aspen Institute has a new fellowship for tech policy experts. (Aspen)

The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative has service design and portfolio manager openings in their Justice and Opportunity vertical. (CZI)

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is looking for a surveillance activist and a staff technologist, among other positions. (EFF)

The Lab at D.C. has three postings at the moment, including a data scientist, social scientist and operations analyst, plus a more recently added internship. (The Lab)

Measures for Justice is looking for software developers and a research associate. (MforJ)

PEW is looking for someone to help with their court modernization work. (PEW)

Robin Hood Foundation's fellowship program, which helps people build user-centered technology for low-income Americans, is now open to applicants. (RHF)

Upturn has a couple full-time research and policy analyst positions. (Upturn)