Interviews & Profiles

Jabari Brisport on police robots: ‘It’s the depersonalization of what makes communities safe’

The Brooklyn state senator introduced a bill to ban the NYPD from using the ‘Digidog’ and other surveillance robots.

State Sen. Jabari Brisport and the NYPD's 'Digidog' robot

State Sen. Jabari Brisport and the NYPD's 'Digidog' robot NYS Senate Media Services; Sahalie Donaldson

New York City Mayor Eric Adams reintroduced “Digidogs” and other new technologies for the NYPD at a grand unveiling event in Times Square last week, and not everyone is a fan of the four-legged robot. State Sen. Jabari Brisport has been vocal about his opposition to the use of robots by police agencies. The Brooklyn senator maintains the robots will contribute to his constituents feeling unsafe in their neighborhoods, and the focus should be on investing in community services. Earlier this year, the Brooklyn state senator reintroduced a bill that would prohibit police departments from using surveillance robots, armed robots and robots with the potential to harm people. Assembly Member Marcela Mitaynes is expected to introduce an Assembly version of the bill. 

City & State caught up with Brisport to discuss the importance of his bill and plans to garner support for it this legislative session. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

At the beginning of the year, you introduced a bill outlawing the use of robots by police agencies.  From your perspective, what is the importance of this legislation, if passed?

We first introduced it when the NYPD first deployed the “Digidog” in the (New York City Housing Authority) development. We recognized the danger of the NYPD increasing its ability to harm or surveil New Yorkers using robotic technology. We are now pushing it again now that the NYPD has really reintroduced the “Digidogs” along with the other robot for subways.

I think depersonalized robots that can surveil my constituents or any community members make people inherently feel less safe. And when it comes to things like public safety, my constituents have been pretty clear: They are looking for more jobs for youth, better lighting on the streets, they want the homeless to find permanent housing as well as more mental health care and addiction services available in the community. None of that is met by having robotic dogs patrol.

Some people have argued there are benefits to using bomb-defusal robots. Would this bill prohibit the use of these types of bomb-defusal robots?

The bill specifically prohibits the NYPD from using robots that are weaponized, that can cause harm, or that can engage in surveillance. So a bomb-defusal robot is permissible.

The bill would prohibit the cops from using robots with weapons, robots that don't have weapons but could cause injury to people, and robots used for surveillance. How do you determine whether or not a robot “could” be harmful? What are the benchmarks that will be used?

There's a few things to consider. “Digidogs” are a product of Boston Dynamics, which predominantly designs these for military purposes. So there is that consideration. And then we're also looking at what's happening in other jurisdictions. Late last year, San Francisco decided to allow police to deploy robots that could kill people in extreme circumstances (though this was later reversed). It's things like that that we're considering.

Why are police robots worse than other police initiatives? We already have surveillance cameras tracking people's every move. What about the robots specifically makes this so much more dystopian and scary?

It's the further depersonalization of what makes communities safe. People feel safe when they know their neighbors and know there are strong community ties. Having a depersonalized robot engaging in surveillance or patrolling undoes that sense of community. It is also just a very blatant expansion of police surveillance abilities – akin to putting up more and more cameras.

What is your response to the argument that robots are a form of innovation that will be used to stop crime and that the benefit outweighs the risk?

That's playing fast and loose with language. Every expansion in surveillance has been an innovation in technology and technological innovations are not inherently good. So I reject that framing. It has not been made clear how exactly these robots will make New Yorkers safer. It seems like a shiny new toy that the administration wants to use, as opposed to actually addressing root conditions and root causes of crime.

You’ve been vocal about your opposition to “Digidogs,” is this bill specifically impactful in New York City and meant to address the NYPD’s use of “Digidogs”? How big of a problem do you see this being across the state (outside of New York City)? 

If the NYPD wants to use it today, there may be other police departments that want to use it tomorrow. An increase in police surveillance is not good for communities, no matter where you are in New York state.

What is your perspective on the use of robots patrolling subway platforms instead of the police? Some may argue that robots aren’t able to shoot anyone and police resources would be better spent elsewhere.

The best use of money in our subways (is) the goal of making them free and also increasing their service to every six minutes. The biggest public safety thing for people that don't feel safe on platforms is knowing that the train is going to be coming in six minutes, whether it's the middle of the day or late at night. This seems like a misuse of funds that doesn't address the actual problem, which is that people are having long waits for the subway, or they are getting hit with potential fare hikes that the governor is proposing.

Where do you see the enthusiasm around this bill going this legislative session? How will you prevent it from being yet another bill stalled in Albany? 

We're gonna build up more public education around the dangers of increasing police surveillance, and the police stake in New York City. (And) build a critical mass of people that are shouting out in favor of this bill, reaching out to their legislators to co-sponsor and speak up for it. I'm looking forward to passing it this session.

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.