The Honolulu Police Department will begin using AI-assisted materials next year.
Interim HPD Police Chief Vade Ranic announced Thursday that HPD intends to launch a pilot program as early as next spring that will use AI generation to speed up some internal processes at the department.
Kerry Yoshida, HPD's public information officer, told Aloha State Daily via email Friday, “AI would be used strictly as an aid in drafting a report.”
“Officers will still have to input critical information such as names, headings, and key facts into each report,” Yoshida told ASD. “The AI software won’t just generate a fully filled report, and no report can be auto-submitted. Each report would carry an audit trail, and videos and transcripts would be retained for supervisory review and discovery. Supervisors will still review the reports for accuracy. These checks are built-in to ensure human involvement is still part of the process.”
The pilot program, Yoshida said, will begin by only using AI reports regarding non-arrest or cold cases, not any cases involving arrests or the use of force.
Specifics about the program are still up in the air. Yoshida told ASD that the department is investigating multiple vendors — some of which “specialize in police-oriented products” — but no estimate of the program’s cost can be made.
“[The cost] will depend greatly on the impact on how much it could improve efficiency and getting our officers back on the road vs. writing reports,” Yoshida said. “There are other multiple factors including immediate hardware and software needs, as well as maintenance costs over so many years.”
HPD would not be the first police department to begin using AI to write reports, with Yoshida saying that municipalities in Florida, Minnesota, California and Colorado have already begun similar projects.
CBS reported Friday that officers in Eagan, Minnesota, are able to write reports in five minutes, where it used to take 10 to 15. The technology the Eagan officers use include AI-generated transcripts of footage recorded by police body cameras, which are then reviewed for inaccuracies.
“Any new technology must be vetted thoroughly, with public input, clear accountability protocols, and a competitive review process,” Vanic said in a statement Thursday.
“Leadership means confronting difficult questions—not avoiding them,” Vanic said. “The conversation around AI and law enforcement isn’t going away, and we can choose to lead that conversation with integrity.”
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