United States: computers help decide who goes to jail
26 January 2018 | Written by La redazione
Every day, judges across the United States face harrowing decisions. Facing overflowing dockets, courts are increasingly using computer-based tools to help make those choices. Now, a new study suggests that one widely used tool – an algorithm that calculates “risk scores” for defendants in sentencing or bail hearings – is no better than people armed with a few key pieces of information. “A fancy model isn’t necessarily a better model,” says David Robinson, who studies predictive analytics and governance at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., but wasn’t involved in the new work.
