RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, facial recognition technology provides an invaluable tool for law enforcement in the apprehension of suspects and criminals, as well as identifying the whereabouts of missing persons; and
WHEREAS, on June 28, 2018 the Capital Gazette shooter, who killed five and gravely wounded several others, was promptly identified because law enforcement had access to facial recognition technology in spite of the shooter mutilating his hands to avoid being fingerprinted; and
WHEREAS, INTERPOL, the Federal bureau of Investigation (FBI), and other law enforcement agencies employ facial recognition technology to streamline security screenings, apprehend criminal suspects, and locate missing persons; and
WHEREAS, sixteen (16) states allow the FBI to use facial recognition technology to compare the faces of suspected criminals to driver's license and state issued identification photos; and
WHEREAS, according to researchers at the Georgetown Law School, as of 2016, one in every two American adults - 117 million people-are in facial-recognition networks used by law enforcement in the country, a number that is likely higher today; and
WHEREAS, the Chicago Police Department (CPD) has employed a facial recognition system called NeoFace since 2013; and
WHEREAS, in the first documented usage of facial recognition technology by Chicago law enforcement in 2013, a Chicago Transit Authority surveillance camera picked up an image of a man who had just taken another man's cellphone at gunpoint, CPD ran the photo through a database employing facial recognition technology and confirmed a match; and
WHEREAS, then-State's Attorney Anita Alvarez said that, "this case is a great example that these high-tech tools are helping to enhance identification and lead us to defendants that might otherwise evade capture;'' and
WHEREAS, at the present time, there are no federal laws specifically governing the use of facial recognition technology; and
WHEREAS, the State of Illinois prohibit private entities from using biometric recognition technologies without consent, either in the form of signage or written consent; and
WHEREAS, the Municipal Code of Chicago. Section 2-84-053, provides that the superintendent of police "is authorized to enter into agreements with public or private entities concerning placement, installation, maintenance or use of video, audio, telecommunications or other similar equipment" subject to approval by the corporation counsel; and
WHEREAS, under the direction of the superintendent of the CPD and approval by the corporation counsel, a pilot program should be implemented to authorize business licensees to employ facial recognition technology system for security purposes; NOW, THEREFORE
BE IT RESOLVED, that we, the members of the City Council of the City of Chicago do hereby call upon the Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department to establish a pilot program to enter into agreements with the licensed businesses in Chicago to create a database that contains photographs of individuals arrested, individuals with outstanding warrants, and missing persons.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that this pilot program expires at the end of three (3) years from the execution j»f the agreements.
Edward M.u&Jrlce Alderman, 14h Ward