Researchers will use artificial intelligence to analyze the tone and word choice that LAPD officers use during traffic stops, the department announced Tuesday, part of a broader study of whether police language sometimes unnecessarily escalates public encounters. He acknowledged that certain standards are subjective, and that researchers may not always have the same observations of a single interaction. The department does review footage, mostly from incidents in which officers use force or after a personnel complaint has been filed. Under LAPD policy, aggressive or profane language is banned, and the department says it doesn't recognize so-called "tactical language," to get compliance from uncooperative suspects. The USC study comes on the heels of similar efforts by researchers at Stanford and the University of Michigan.

Source: Los Angeles Times August 23, 2023 14:48 UTC