San Diego Criminal Lawyers Blog
Many arrests are initiated by the victim of the alleged crime calling the police. A victim can also go to the police precinct and file a criminal complaint against the perpetrator in person. Whether in person or on the phone, the police open an investigation as soon as the victim starts talking.
The police will listen to the victim’s complaint and interview him or her for details about the event. Evidence of the alleged crime is collected and identifying characteristics of the potential defendant is gathered. At some point, the details from the investigation are written in a statement, that after being reviewed by the victim, is sworn to and signed. This statement forms the basis of the criminal complaint.
Sometimes, however, these police reports are not entirely truthful. When a victim lies and files a criminal complaint against someone, it is a crime in California. With the help of artificial intelligence, the police are actively cracking down on these fake police reports.
Artificial Intelligence in Criminal Investigations
Since the 2000s, law enforcement and artificial intelligence have been working closely to develop science and technological tools that would enable law enforcement to do their job better. Take, for example, the use of DNA collected at crime scenes in rape investigations. When used correctly, unique DNA markers can be isolated and used to identify the suspect and eliminate with almost 100% certainty all other potential suspects.
The next wave of tools to be developed will assist law enforcement with specific criminal investigations. Take, for example, robbery investigations. In California, robbery is a felony with a prison sentence of over a year in state prison. A robbery charge means a suspect took personal property in possession of another person from his or her immediate presence, against his or her will, by using force or fear. California Penal Code Section 211.
When the police are called to investigate the robbery, the victim will be asked questions to elicit a criminal complaint. What happened, how did it happen, was the victim hurt, what was taken, and who did it, are basic questions the victim will be asked. The victim will also be asked for a written statement of the robbery and the events and details described.
VeriPol can Detect Lies in Robbery Reports
VeriPol is software used in robbery investigations to identify false robbery reports. It was developed by computer scientists in Spain and used by the National Police to identify false robbery reports. The software analyzes the victim’s written statement to identify false reports. 83% of the software-identified fake reports were closed after the victim faced further questioning and resulted in no robbery charges being filed.
By analyzing the fake reports, conclusions were drawn to make robbery investigations in the future better. False robbery reports tend to be shorter, focused on the stolen property rather than the robbery itself, few details were provided about the attacker or robbery, and there was an absence of witnesses. This is just one example of how artificial intelligence is transforming criminal investigations and being used by law enforcement to go after the correct defendants. Continue reading