Opinion Columns - The Durango Herald

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Writer on the Range: When water dries up, it can be deadly

In Oregon, the Klamath Basin wildlife refuges have fallen into their winter silence now. The huge, clamorous flocks of geese that fill the sky during migration have moved south. ...

DATE: Jan 1, 2021 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Josh Joswick: 2020: Tyranny, insanity and plain ol’ bull

In this time of rancor and ill-will toward our fellow man – wait a minute, isn’t it still the holiday season? – we can all agree on something: Merriam-Webster’s dictionary is an impartial so...

DATE: Dec 31, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Charles Brennan: Report shows rural Colorado struggled before the pandemic

As Coloradans start to imagine rebuilding an economy after the pandemic, a newly released report suggests that, as of the end of 2018, many parts of rural Colorado still haven’t recovered fr...

DATE: Dec 30, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Timothy Egan: Lewis and Clark’s travails offer guidance

Every five years or so I try to return to land’s end, the continent’s western edge, where the Columbia River empties into the Pacific Ocean – the final heave of the River of the West. I pref...

DATE: Dec 27, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Melissa Youssef and Jim Griffin: 9-R bond election was more significant than you thought

Amid all the noise and drama of the November presidential election, readers may have missed the full significance of the recent Durango School District 9-R bond vote, also on Nov. 3. ...

DATE: Dec 22, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Justin McBrayer: Why fact-checking fails to change minds

Nearly everyone agrees that we face a fake news epidemic the likes of which we haven’t seen before. For years, American citizens have reported that they are more concerned about fake news th...

DATE: Dec 21, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Richard Grossman: Half a century later, population is still the issue

“Family planning could bring more benefits to more people at less cost than other single technology now available ...” – James Grant “Either we reduce the world’s population volun...

DATE: Dec 20, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Farhad Manjoo: Our mental health is worst in two decades

Nine long, deadly months into the pandemic, Americans report severe psychic distress. According to a new Gallup survey, Americans’ assessment of our mental health is “worse than it has been ...

DATE: Dec 17, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Ernest House Jr.: A solid plan to restore 30% of Colorado’s lands and waters by 2030

“In a state known for its mountains, rivers and scenic beauty, the slow but persistent loss of nature threatens life as we know it in the Centennial State.” That’s according to a...

DATE: Dec 16, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Dugald Owen: The reasoned view, acceptance of uncertainties mark maturity

Editor’s note: Fort Lewis College held its second virtual commencement on Dec. 4, when 150 students gathered online to hear recorded speeches. Professor Dugald Owen gave the commencement...

DATE: Dec 14, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Dustin Bleizeffer: One state still craves coal

As the rest of the West rushes to meet increasingly ambitious goals to reduce carbon emissions, one state is moving in exactly the opposite direction. It’s Wyoming, which even wa...

DATE: Dec 13, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Paul Krugman: Learn to stop worrying and embrace debt

Amid all the wild swings in U.S. politics over the past decade, one thing has remained constant: the GOP position on government debt. The party considers high levels of debt an existential t...

DATE: Dec 13, 2020 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Photos: Battle of the Animas

Photos: Animas River Days

Photos: Iron Horse Bicycle Classic mountain bike racesPlenty of spectators packed Steamworks Brewing Company on Sunday

Plenty of spectators packed Steamworks Brewing Company on Sunday

Photos: Iron Horse Bicycle Classic pro road racesCyclists had beautiful day to ride into Silverton on Saturday

Cyclists had beautiful day to ride into Silverton on Saturday

Photos: Durango High School graduation ceremony

Photos: Durango Big Picture High School graduates receive diplomas

Durango police chief says technology name of game in modern policingAI bodycams, first responder drones and more in store for DPD

Artificial intelligence, drone first responders and body cameras that can translate 50 languages aren’t far-flung concepts of some opaque Hollywood future anymore. Even in Durango, they are becoming staples of modern policing.Durango Police Department is embracing technological advancements in what Police Chief Brice Current described to city councilors earlier this year as a “cautious” yet “progressive” approach.Since at least April, Current has stressed how DPD’s top priority with new technology is reinforcing public safety. Since at least April, Current has attended various community meetings about new technology the police department is adopting, where he’s stressed how DPD’s top priority with new technology is to reinforce public safety. He has also addressed residents’ concerns about how powerful some new technologies, including Flock Safety and other automated license plate reader cameras, have become – an ongoing conversation between DPD, the city and advocates for tighter automated license plate reader regulations in Durango.At a Kiwanis Club of Durango meeting last month, for example, Current addressed Flock cameras and drones, and also the importance of trust and accountability for law enforcement.“It is healthy for the public – if we’re going to be one Durango and we’re going to work together – to question government. I question government,” he said.

Current said accountability for officers and third-party technology services is necessary, and that requires education and transparency.Evoking laughter, Current showed a video clip of a drone launching a net at a person.“It requires no training, no policy, and there’s no way we’re ever going to use this,” he said. “There’s lots of other technology out there that is really cool, but just doesn’t fit in Durango right now.”Grappler systems that cast nets to trap a car’s tires are no longer gadgets used only by Batman in films and comic books. Current said Castle Rock uses just such a system. But they aren’t a good fit for Durango.“Those are great tools, don’t get me wrong, but there’s some – like facial recognition, some other things – that just aren’t going to fit in this community and shouldn’t fit here for a long time,” he said.New technologies at DPDDraft One AI Reporting by Axon is an audio transcription service that can identify multiple people in a body camera recording and produce a police report based on what is captured.Current said he held off on trying a demo of Draft One for a long time, because although DPD has used transcription services for years, he didn’t feel comfortable bringing an AI-generated police report to court.But AI transcription technology has come a long way, he said.“This system can take five different people or more at a time and assign who they are and transcribe what they’re saying in the report,” he said.Another benefit, he said, is it trains officers to speak into their body cameras more regularly to record what they are thinking and observing. That helps the veracity of officers’ testimony in court.“When you’re pulling a vehicle over, you used to say in court, ‘(The suspect is) reaching under the seat. I saw him doing some stuff that made me feel nervous.’ And the jury’s like, ‘Hmm, you’re saying that now because you found 2 pounds of dope in his car. But is that really what you’re thinking?’” Current said.Now, officers speak directly into their body cameras to capture not just what the body camera sees but what they are thinking and how they are processing a situation as it unfolds.“‘I’m feeling pretty nervous right now. He keeps reaching under his car (seat).’ They’re talking to their camera. ‘He’s waited two blocks to turn to pull over. That’s odd,’ ... It’s teaching the officer to talk more about what they’re feeling in the reports,” he said.DPD is using Draft One transcripts in misdemeanor cases, although it hasn’t begun using them in felony cases, Current said. But he is confident it will start using them in felony cases soon.The police department’s body cameras are now able to livestream video to the police station and 911 dispatchers at the Durango Emergency Communications Center, allowing first responder agencies to monitor situations in real time.Current said DPD is looking into getting language translation capabilities in 50 different languages for body cameras, but that feature comes with a higher price tag and the police department is waiting on grant funding to make a move.DPD is also implementing AI software into its internal systems to quickly search statutes to determine what charges might best match a situation, to flag internal affairs reviews if officer misconduct is detected in video footage, and more.

By now, residents may have noticed one or both of the drone first responders DPD deployed this year to survey incidents faster than officers can reasonably be expected to arrive on scene.Police used a drone last month to locate a missing boy near the Animas River. The drone deployed from Durango Fire Protection District Station No. 1 downtown and arrived in the general area the boy was last seen – behind the Durango Mall – in just a few minutes.Police also deployed a drone last week to the scene of a fatal shooting near Durango Skate Park.Within two minutes of the shooting, police launched a drone and got an aerial view of the scene “within seconds” of it being launched, according to a DPD news release.A second drone was launched a minute later.“The Durango Police Department’s Drone as First Responder system arrived above the scene before officers,” the release said. “The drone operator was able to see that there was no further gunfire taking place as officers approached the area. This technology provided officers with real-time information and helped them arrive with a stronger understanding of what was happening on scene.”The two drones operate on about a 2-mile radius with flight times of about 40 minutes.

‘We’ve learned to vet them’DPD and the city began to face harsher scrutiny from residents last year after members of DeFlock Durango performed records requests for Flock audits that revealed vehicle and license plate data was appearing in searches by law enforcement agencies across the country that have 287(g) cooperation agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.Flock Safety has faced pushback from communities around the country for what some opponents of ALPRs call a mass surveillance system of Orwellian proportions. Critics have bashed Flock for providing data to federal law enforcement, for questionable privacy policies when it comes to captured data and for a lack of oversight on how police departments use data.

Current has repeatedly insisted Flock cameras do not constitute “mass surveillance,” although he has acknowledged privacy and abuse of power concerns.He said things are changing for the better with Flock after it faced backlash for working with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.He said DPD has always dealt with third-party technology services, and over time it’s leaned to vet companies it partners with.When legislation required police to start wearing bodycams, police had issues with camera companies not storing data as required by law.“Do we trust these groups? Well, we've learned to vet them,” he said.cburney@durangoherald.com

AI bodycams, first responder drones and more in store for DPD