On 25 October 2024, the Faculty of Law at the University of Trento hosted a scientific seminar, entitled “AI, Public Power and Security”.
Among the distinguished panellists was a representative of the PRECRICIS project consortium – Dr. Gian Maria Campedelli, PhD – a research scientist at the Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK)‘s Mobile and Social Computing Lab. FBK is the technical coordinator of PRECRISIS.
The event focused on the critical applications of predictive policing and facial recognition – in particular, the use of predictive algorithms in the public sector. The participants put a specific emphasis on the case of Italy and the applications related to policing, surveillance and criminal justice.
Dr. Campedelli’s presentation provided a historical overview on the origins and development of predictive policing in the US.
As a leading computational criminologist, the PRECRISIS representative discussed the theoretical frames in criminology and policing that led to the generation of predictive policing products, along with a survey of risks and negative effects concerning bias and discrimination against certain groups (e.g. minorities) in the American context.
“Finally, I concluded by offering some comparisons with the Italian context, where predictive policing algorithms are used by several cities but the discussion is not as mature and extensive as we witness in other countries”, Dr. Campedelli commented.
The other seminar speakers included researchers from the universities of Trento and of Macerata. The audience was composed of legal researchers, scholars and practitioners, operating in the Italian context.
