JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – Mississippi Department of Public Safety officials say the agency is not moving forward with a proposed AI-powered camera trailer system that was pitched to the state ITS board, after concerns were raised about privacy and enforcement.
State Rep. Dan Eubanks, R-DeSoto County, is pleased DPS backed away from the proposal but still worries.
“I think America and Mississippi too is waking up to the fact that we are in a nanny state as it is,” Eubanks said. “And with the advent of AI and the adoption of it, it should scare everybody to death.”
DPS staff told the ITS board June 18 that camera-equipped trailers would be used in high-crash corridors where troopers cannot easily patrol, according to the script.
The system described to the board would capture potential violations, send the information “downstream to an officer” and allow an officer to determine whether a violation is valid and issue a citation “in real time.”
“If you have the camera system overhead, now you can actually see the truck driver on his cell phone… children standing in the front seat,” described Major Scott Henley, DPS Deputy Director of Commercial Transportation.
Four days after the presentation, DPS Commissioner Sean Tindell posted online that the agency would not move forward.
“DPS has not and will not enter into any such contract,” Tindell said in the video post. “We will not utilize any such technology to issue citations.”
DPS also issued the following written statement Wednesday.
“The Mississippi Department of Public Safety is not moving forward with a contract with Acusensus.
The initial proposal presented to the agency was associated with commercial vehicles only and differed from what was presented to the ITS Board.
Based upon various concerns and a review of the proposal, Commissioner Sean Tindell made the decision to not enter into an agreement with Acusensus to deploy their cameras or engage their services in Mississippi.”
Eubanks said lawmakers need to clarify what is allowed, pointing to a 2009 ban on red-light cameras that he said applied to municipalities and counties but did not include the state.
“I think it’s something that needs to have some oversight and some approval,” noted Eubanks.
He said he expects more legislative questions in January.
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