Can Racist Algorithms Be Fixed?
A new study adds to the debate over racial bias in risk assessment tools widely used in courtrooms.
In this data-driven era, if you’ve been arrested it’s increasingly likely the judge deciding whether to send you home or to jail to await trial will consult actuarial math. Specialized algorithms—called risk assessment tools—plumb your history, demographics, and other details to spit out a score quantifying how likely you are to commit another crime or to show up at your next hearing. But these tools have come under fire for treating people of color more harshly.
According to a out Monday from the Center for Court Innovation, a justice reform agency based in New York City, those criticisms may be well-founded. “There’s no way to square the circle there, taking the bias
