How it works: Fort Collins police using AI to write reports
Using example body camera footage, Sgt. Robert Younger demonstrates how the Axon AI program Draft One aides in the report-writing process.
Fort Collins community members are invited to a technology showcase hosted by the city on Sept. 17 to learn more about how Fort Collins Police Services uses various technologies, including camera systems and artificial intelligence.
This showcase and panel discussion comes three months after Fort Collins City Council voted to immediately cancel its contract with Flock Safety, a company that provides an automated license plate reader system. The vote followed six months of public pushback on the use of the system over privacy and data usage concerns.
Technologies, systems and programs discussed at the Sept. 17 event will include:
- Traffic cameras.
- Speed/red-light cameras.
- Text-to-911.
- Body-worn cameras and Draft One AI report writing software.
- Road weather management mobile detectors.
- GIS usage.
- The city’s drone program.
- Infrastructure scanning pilot program.
- Transformer loading dashboard.
The event will be held at the Fort Collins Senior Center, 1200 Raintree Drive, and doors open at 5:45 p.m., according to a news release. It will include a panel presentation from police, FC911, and the city’s light and power and geographic information system (GIS) departments.
There will be an opportunity for attendees to ask questions.
Police say the goal of the showcase is to help the community better understand the city’s decision-making processes behind technology uses as the city is working on developing a policy for the responsible use and management of surveillance technology “focusing on key principles of accountability, transparency, data management, privacy, and appropriate oversight of the technology and data collected,” according to the news release.
While Flock Safety cameras have been removed from Fort Collins city-owned property, these cameras remain on private property and in surrounding communities, including in the parking lots of private businesses and throughout unincorporated Larimer County. Wellington and other residents in nearby towns have voiced concerns over the county’s and their towns’ ongoing contracts with Flock Safety.
Reporter Rebecca Powell contributed to this article.
