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R-1976 · registry record · verified 2026-10-10

Face recognition match leads to Robert Williams's wrongful arrest

Face recognition misidentification leads to wrongful arrest of Robert Williams, Detroit Police Department, Michigan, 2020–2024

Where
Detroit, Michigan, United States
When
2020–2024
System
DataWorks Plus face recognition via Michigan State Police SNAP database
Type of system
Face recognition (AI)
Used by
Detroit Police Department
Domain
Policing
Who was affected
Individuals
People affected
1
People named
Named (chose to make their case public)
Brought to light by
Lawsuit, 2024-06-28
Remedy
Partial

Summary

Detroit police ran a blurry surveillance still from a watch-store shoplifting through DataWorks Plus face recognition, which matched Robert Williams; he was arrested at home in January 2020 despite being out of state on the day of the theft. His 2021 federal lawsuit settled in June 2024, barring arrests based solely on face recognition results.

Sources

  1. Detroit Takes Important Step in Curbing the Harms of Face Recognition TechnologyElectronic Frontier Foundation · Originating report
  2. Williams v. City of Detroit (face recognition false arrest)ACLU
  3. Civil Rights Advocates Achieve the Nation's Strongest Police Department Policy on Facial Recognition TechnologyACLU

Tags

Record

First collected
2026-04-21
Last verified
2026-10-10
Verified by
Checked by the author against the sources

Cite this record

The Witnessed Sentence (2026). R-1976: Face recognition match leads to Robert Williams's wrongful arrest. Registry record, verified 2026-10-10. https://witnessedsentence.org/registry/r-1976/

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