Predictive policing makes Robert McDaniel criminal target

A Black Chicago resident was deemed a likely criminal by a predictive policing system, resulting in his harrassment and social ostracism.

Chicago resident Robert McDaniel was assessed by a predictive policing system as likely to be involved in a future shooting - as a perpetrator, or as a victim, or both - on the basis of his physical proximity to and relationships with known shooters and shooting casualties.

McDaniel was then placed on the city's 'heat list' (later renamed 'Strategic Subject List' or 'SSL'), a database of people identified as potential shooters or shooting victims. 

McDaniel was monitored by the police and other relevant authorities, despite the police having little idea what to do with individuals on the list, according to an influential research study.

However, McDaniel had never been involved in a shooting before or caught in any violent event and, as a result of his assessment, was constantly surveiled by the police, ostracised by his community and was shot twice.

The Chicago Police Department system used an algorithm developed by Illinois Institute of Technology Professor Miles Wernick that generated a rank-ordered list of individuals deemed most likely to be involved in a homicide or non-fatal shooting.

The system drew on data points, including criminal records and arrest history, social network analysis, gang affiliations,victim history, age at most recent arrest and trends in criminal activity.

The exact details of the algorithm and all its inputs have never been made public, with proprietary technology and trade secrecy cited as the reason for non-disclosure.