Police use AI to arrest wrong person

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ErnestEndeavor
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2:51p, 3/27/26
This is why I get so pissed off when people hype AI as some sort of magical technology. It isn't. So many people have been conned to believe that it's infallible.

Now you have police blindly trusting it. A Tennessee grandmother was arrested last year for an alleged bank fraud in Fargo, North Dakota. She's never been to North Dakota. She's never even been on an airplane.

The police sent a blurry image to a facial recognition database that supposedly matched with her, and instead of actually doing a damn investigation the freaking idiot detectives got a warrant to arrest her. All because they just blindly trusted an AI facial recognition match.

She was held in detention for months fighting extradition before investigators were finally convinced it was the wrong person. While she was in custody she lost everything including her home.

This is an interview with her attorney:


She's about to file a civil rights lawsuit, which will be difficult due to sovereign immunity. This same YouTube channel covered a different case a few weeks ago about a guy in a casino who was arrested for no reason because the AI told the police to do so. I don't know what future AI regulation needs to look like when it comes to police, but we can't just be doing crap like this.
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harge57
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In reply to ErnestEndeavor • 2:53p, 3/27/26
AG
ErnestEndeavor said:
This is why I get so pissed off when people hype AI as some sort of magical technology. It isn't. So many people have been conned to believe that it's infallible.

Now you have police blindly trusting it. A Tennessee grandmother was arrested last year for an alleged bank fraud in Fargo, North Dakota. She's never been to North Dakota. She's never even been on an airplane.

The police sent a blurry image to a facial recognition database that supposedly matched with her, and instead of actually doing a damn investigation the freaking idiot detectives got a warrant to arrest her. All because they just blindly trusted an AI facial recognition match.

She was held in detention for months fighting extradition before investigators were finally convinced it was the wrong person. While she was in custody she lost everything including her home.

This is an interview with her attorney:


She's about to file a civil rights lawsuit, which will be difficult due to sovereign immunity. This same YouTube channel covered a different case a few weeks ago about a guy in a casino who was arrested for no reason because the AI told the police to do so. I don't know what future AI regulation needs to look like when it comes to police, but we can't just be doing crap like this.

This is your issue, not the AI. I can also promise you there have been many more human misidentifications in lineups etc. than AI ever has mis-identified.
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waitwhat?
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In reply to harge57 • 2:56p, 3/27/26
harge57 said:
ErnestEndeavor said:
This is why I get so pissed off when people hype AI as some sort of magical technology. It isn't. So many people have been conned to believe that it's infallible.

Now you have police blindly trusting it. A Tennessee grandmother was arrested last year for an alleged bank fraud in Fargo, North Dakota. She's never been to North Dakota. She's never even been on an airplane.

The police sent a blurry image to a facial recognition database that supposedly matched with her, and instead of actually doing a damn investigation the freaking idiot detectives got a warrant to arrest her. All because they just blindly trusted an AI facial recognition match.

She was held in detention for months fighting extradition before investigators were finally convinced it was the wrong person. While she was in custody she lost everything including her home.

This is an interview with her attorney:


She's about to file a civil rights lawsuit, which will be difficult due to sovereign immunity. This same YouTube channel covered a different case a few weeks ago about a guy in a casino who was arrested for no reason because the AI told the police to do so. I don't know what future AI regulation needs to look like when it comes to police, but we can't just be doing crap like this.

This is your issue, not the AI. I can also promise you there have been many more human misidentifications in lineups etc. than AI ever has mis-identified.


Kind of a low bar considering how new AI is
" 'People that read with pictures think that it's simply about a mask' - Dana Loesch" - Ban Cow Gas

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ErnestEndeavor
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In reply to harge57 • 2:57p, 3/27/26
The police do stupid things to arrest innocent people. That's not new. Now they have a technology that many have been led to believe as infallible helping them do it even more. That's the issue. The blind trust in these AI systems is becoming pervasive throughout society.

And at least most of the time when police identify someone in a lineup they might at least be someone who lives in the area and they might actually talk to some people about their whereabouts at a certain time, or pull records from cell phone carriers to confirm, etc.

This time? Nope. AI is infallible. That is the culture we need to avoid.
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harge57
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In reply to ErnestEndeavor • 4:15p, 3/27/26
AG
ErnestEndeavor said:
The police do stupid things to arrest innocent people. That's not new. Now they have a technology that many have been led to believe as infallible helping them do it even more. That's the issue. The blind trust in these AI systems is becoming pervasive throughout society.

And at least most of the time when police identify someone in a lineup they might at least be someone who lives in the area and they might actually talk to some people about their whereabouts at a certain time, or pull records from cell phone carriers to confirm, etc.

This time? Nope. AI is infallible. That is the culture we need to avoid.

So quit blaming the AI for not being infallible and blame the cops for being lazy.
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Logos Stick
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4:42p, 3/27/26
So AI says this is your perp and the cops don't double check it?

Sounds like a cop problem.
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aggiehawg
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4:50p, 3/27/26
AG
I have a question that is slightly OT but due to the confrontation clause, how would a defense attorney cross examine AI? She was held in detention for much longer than she should have been but how can a lawyer even attack a probable cause supporting an arrest warrant based solely on AI?
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InfantryAg
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In reply to ErnestEndeavor • 5:18p, 3/27/26
AG
Do you have a non-clickbait source?

This is the same guy who said (factually) that GBRS fired their employee because of racism. He hasn't apologized for that yet.

He edits his stories because his business isn't civil rights, it's rage pron.
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Oyster DuPree
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5:18p, 3/27/26
ErnestEndeavor
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In reply to aggiehawg • 5:23p, 3/27/26
In this case the detective sent off a blurry image to an AI image matching service. So I guess you could call someone from there? He wrote in his warrant that after the AI gave him the match that he went to her Facebook page and she looked like the suspect, which was apparently good enough for the magistrate or whoever issued the warrant despite them not doing any other investigating.
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Gunny456
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In reply to InfantryAg • 5:24p, 3/27/26
AG
This. I'll wait to get the true story with facts.
TAMU Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences

Boat racing is like a beautiful woman.......expensive, high maintenance, but well worth the fun!
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ErnestEndeavor
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In reply to InfantryAg • 5:27p, 3/27/26
Sure.

I posted that one out of several because it had an interview with her defense attorney as well as her civil attorney. It also clipped some news coverage.

Here's Lehto talking about it


And some news coverage
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ErnestEndeavor
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5:30p, 3/27/26
Fargo police press conference about the issue
https://www.youtube.com/live/lqiI_JJfKo0?si=ZsV60SO45TQhDtjA
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aggiehawg
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In reply to ErnestEndeavor • 5:35p, 3/27/26
AG
ErnestEndeavor said:
In this case the detective sent off a blurry image to an AI image matching service. So I guess you could call someone from there? He wrote in his warrant that after the AI gave him the match that he went to her Facebook page and she looked like the suspect, which was apparently good enough for the magistrate or whoever issued the warrant despite them not doing any other investigating.

If this story is true, that is almost even worse. An AI "matching service" that is not verified nor certified in any manner? Officer swearing out the arrest warrant has no first hand knowledge and can AI be a witness?

Think about how criminal prosecutions are tried. Can have a crap ton of scientific evidence, DNA, blood spatter, cell phone tower pings, etc. but still need to establish foundation with live witnesses. Who collected it, who processed it, who analyzed it, etc.

I am struggling with this one without additional corroborative evidence against her. AI alone should not be probable cause, IMO.
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ABATTBQ11
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In reply to harge57 • 5:38p, 3/27/26
AG
harge57 said:
ErnestEndeavor said:
This is why I get so pissed off when people hype AI as some sort of magical technology. It isn't. So many people have been conned to believe that it's infallible.

Now you have police blindly trusting it. A Tennessee grandmother was arrested last year for an alleged bank fraud in Fargo, North Dakota. She's never been to North Dakota. She's never even been on an airplane.

The police sent a blurry image to a facial recognition database that supposedly matched with her, and instead of actually doing a damn investigation the freaking idiot detectives got a warrant to arrest her. All because they just blindly trusted an AI facial recognition match.

She was held in detention for months fighting extradition before investigators were finally convinced it was the wrong person. While she was in custody she lost everything including her home.

This is an interview with her attorney:


She's about to file a civil rights lawsuit, which will be difficult due to sovereign immunity. This same YouTube channel covered a different case a few weeks ago about a guy in a casino who was arrested for no reason because the AI told the police to do so. I don't know what future AI regulation needs to look like when it comes to police, but we can't just be doing crap like this.

This is your issue, not the AI. I can also promise you there have been many more human misidentifications in lineups etc. than AI ever has mis-identified.

Human lineups don't pick a random person from another state
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Gigem_94
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5:41p, 3/27/26
AG
The other problem is that the judge actually issued the warrant. I wonder what detectives disclosed to the judge.
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ErnestEndeavor
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In reply to aggiehawg • 5:42p, 3/27/26
They sent it to an AI facial recognition software company and got the supposed match. According to the warrant they "confirmed" the match with another service.
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BigRobSA
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In reply to Logos Stick • 5:50p, 3/27/26
Logos Stick said:
So AI says this is your perp and the cops don't double check it?

Sounds like a cop problem.

Sounds like a both problem.

The AI obviously sucks. As do the "detectives".
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aggiehawg
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In reply to ErnestEndeavor • 5:52p, 3/27/26
AG
ErnestEndeavor said:
They sent it to an AI facial recognition software company and got the supposed match. According to the warrant they "confirmed" the match with another service.

That is circular, not corroboration. GIGO. Just because it reaches the same conclusion is not corroboration. Not for an arrest warrant. For a search warrant? Different. That might pass muster.
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51Merc-98Ag
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5:54p, 3/27/26
AG
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good nuggets
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6:06p, 3/27/26
AG
Crazy when you think about this through the lens of CIA disguises and how easy it would be to frame someone.
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ABATTBQ11
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6:07p, 3/27/26
AG
It's also worth noting the similar incident from Reno that he mentions and covers in a separate video. Casino's AI flagged a guy as someone else who had been trespassed. Cop verified his ID didn't match and was legit. Also verified the ID the casino had was legit. Arrested him anyway for finger printing at the county jail, theorizing he must have someone at the DMV issuing him game ID's. Finger prints didn't match those on the trespassed ID. Kept insisting to anyone who would listen that it was so weird, but still didn't drop it and took it to the prosecutor. Guy spent almost $2k getting the charges dropped. AI facial match trumped differing state issued RealID's, finger prints, and all other evidence to the contrary. Cop never thought to simply check if the other guy existed.
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ABATTBQ11
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In reply to Gigem_94 • 6:08p, 3/27/26
AG
Gigem_94 said:
The other problem is that the judge actually issued the warrant. I wonder what detectives disclosed to the judge.


They looked at her social media and decided she looked close enough. That's seriously it.
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aggiehawg
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In reply to good nuggets • 6:13p, 3/27/26
AG
good nuggets said:
Crazy when you think about this through the lens of CIA disguises and how easy it would be to frame someone.

Hadn't even considered that but you are correct.
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torrid
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In reply to ABATTBQ11 • 7:58p, 3/27/26
AG
ABATTBQ11 said:
harge57 said:
ErnestEndeavor said:
This is why I get so pissed off when people hype AI as some sort of magical technology. It isn't. So many people have been conned to believe that it's infallible.

Now you have police blindly trusting it. A Tennessee grandmother was arrested last year for an alleged bank fraud in Fargo, North Dakota. She's never been to North Dakota. She's never even been on an airplane.

The police sent a blurry image to a facial recognition database that supposedly matched with her, and instead of actually doing a damn investigation the freaking idiot detectives got a warrant to arrest her. All because they just blindly trusted an AI facial recognition match.

She was held in detention for months fighting extradition before investigators were finally convinced it was the wrong person. While she was in custody she lost everything including her home.

This is an interview with her attorney:


She's about to file a civil rights lawsuit, which will be difficult due to sovereign immunity. This same YouTube channel covered a different case a few weeks ago about a guy in a casino who was arrested for no reason because the AI told the police to do so. I don't know what future AI regulation needs to look like when it comes to police, but we can't just be doing crap like this.

This is your issue, not the AI. I can also promise you there have been many more human misidentifications in lineups etc. than AI ever has mis-identified.

Human lineups don't pick a random person from another state

No, but a detective will put that random person into a photo lineup and show it to a witness or victim. They will then misidentify the random person as the perp, and suddenly they get a free trip courtesy of the US Marshals.
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ABATTBQ11
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In reply to torrid • 8:53p, 3/27/26
AG
torrid said:
ABATTBQ11 said:
harge57 said:
ErnestEndeavor said:
This is why I get so pissed off when people hype AI as some sort of magical technology. It isn't. So many people have been conned to believe that it's infallible.

Now you have police blindly trusting it. A Tennessee grandmother was arrested last year for an alleged bank fraud in Fargo, North Dakota. She's never been to North Dakota. She's never even been on an airplane.

The police sent a blurry image to a facial recognition database that supposedly matched with her, and instead of actually doing a damn investigation the freaking idiot detectives got a warrant to arrest her. All because they just blindly trusted an AI facial recognition match.

She was held in detention for months fighting extradition before investigators were finally convinced it was the wrong person. While she was in custody she lost everything including her home.

This is an interview with her attorney:


She's about to file a civil rights lawsuit, which will be difficult due to sovereign immunity. This same YouTube channel covered a different case a few weeks ago about a guy in a casino who was arrested for no reason because the AI told the police to do so. I don't know what future AI regulation needs to look like when it comes to police, but we can't just be doing crap like this.

This is your issue, not the AI. I can also promise you there have been many more human misidentifications in lineups etc. than AI ever has mis-identified.

Human lineups don't pick a random person from another state

No, but a detective will put that random person into a photo lineup and show it to a witness or victim. They will then misidentify the random person as the perp, and suddenly they get a free trip courtesy of the US Marshals.


Where is a detective from Fargo going to get a picture of a random person from Tennessee? Are you trying to argue that cops are stupid enough to think that randomly picking the right person to put them in a lineup would be more likely than their witness choosing wrong? That I might buy...
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Old_Ag_91
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In reply to aggiehawg • 9:34p, 3/27/26
AG
Mrs hawg with the logic and common sense in this one. I agree. The detectives should be slammed for their lack of investigation. Fargo police dept should be completely embarrassed by this.
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ts5641
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In reply to ErnestEndeavor • 9:45a, 3/28/26
Surprised a judge would sign off on that warrant. Facial recognition has been around for a long time for the police before there was ever even any mention of AI. But it was a tool. You could use it to help bolster your investigation but still had to be corroborated with other evidence in order to establish PC.
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aggiehawg
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In reply to ts5641 • 9:51a, 3/28/26
AG
ts5641 said:
Surprised a judge would sign off on that warrant. Facial recognition has been around for a long time for the police before there was ever even any mention of AI. But it was a tool. You could use it to help bolster your investigation but still had to be corroborated with other evidence in order to establish PC.

Exactly.

Lie detectors have been around forever but still are not admissible in a criminal trial and that involves a human witness, unlike AI.
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B-1 83
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9:58a, 3/28/26
AG
What the hell kind of attorney did she have for her to be detained for 6 months and apparently lots of evidence that she could not possibly be the correct suspect?
Being in TexAgs jail changes a man……..no, not really
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HarleySpoon
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12:39p, 3/28/26
AG
For point of reference, I can tell you that chat gpt cannot distinguish a fixed male cat from a female cat.
Don't ask me how I know.
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ABATTBQ11
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In reply to B-1 83 • 1:58p, 3/28/26
AG
B-1 83 said:
What the hell kind of attorney did she have for her to be detained for 6 months and apparently lots of evidence that she could not possibly be the correct suspect?


The extradition process took that long. There is no, "I didn't do it," in that process. It's purely, "Are you the person Fargo PD wants?" It's basically no questions asked, go figure it out there.
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aggiehawg
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In reply to ABATTBQ11 • 2:10p, 3/28/26
AG
ABATTBQ11 said:
B-1 83 said:
What the hell kind of attorney did she have for her to be detained for 6 months and apparently lots of evidence that she could not possibly be the correct suspect?


The extradition process took that long. There is no, "I didn't do it," in that process. It's purely, "Are you the person Fargo PD wants?" It's basically no questions asked, go figure it out there.

She didn't have an attorney for the extradition process? Brian Kohlberger did. (Who unfortunately for BK was a hot dog who loved seeing himself on TV and did a lot of interviews that he should never have done.)
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MouthBQ98
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2:19p, 3/28/26
AG
AI sould be treated like heresay. It is a good investigative tool but it would not be allowed as admissible evidence on its own. It should be a way to help identify how to get evidence, how to narrow and optimize a search.
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torrid
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In reply to aggiehawg • 3:06p, 3/28/26
AG
.
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