Predicting recidivism – the questionable role of algorithms in the criminal justice system

Many American courts are using an opaque computer algorithm to help judges decide whether a person should be granted bail or parole, and the length of their sentence. However, some have pointed to the apparent racial bias against African-Americans in such algorithms and have questioned their effectiveness in predicting recidivism (reoffending).

Courts increasingly using AI algorithms for predicting recidivism

One such artificial intelligence algorithm is called COMPAS, short for Correctional Offender Management Profiling for Alternative Sanctions.

Over the past 10 years it has been used in more than a million court hearings from California to New York to predict whether a person facing the court will commit another crime if they are released on bail or parole.