Mayor Domenic J. Sarno working with Chief of Staff Tom Ashe, Police Commissioner Cheryl Clapprood, and our City Council – especially Councilors Orlando Ramos, Malo Brown and Victor Davila – have reached a plausible and cooperative agreement, with no restricted timeline, for the future use of facial recognition technology.
Mayor Sarno states, “In the name of public safety and under the proper policy, procedures and regulations and as part of an overall investigation. Facial recognition technology can very well complement all of the other policing resources at our disposal, such as body worn cameras and our Real-Time Crime Analysis Center, that when used together would only enhance our Police Departments ability to address quality of life issues and deter crime. Again, I’m always glad to work with our City Council on good common sense measures for our residents and business community.”
Councilor Ramos added, “I want to thank Councilor Brown and the mayor’s Chief of Staff Tom Ashe for bringing us to the table. I also want to thank Mayor Sarno and Commissioner Clapprood for recognizing that there is a need to press pause on the use of this technology until it can be regulated. In the end, we were able to work together in the best interest of our City. This is the way government should work!”