The Calgary Police Service will begin using a real-time translation feature on all body-worn cameras starting June 1, making it the first police agency in Canada to employ the technology, officials say.
Police Chief Katie McLellan said the feature can automatically detect more than 60 languages and will be available on every Calgary police body-worn camera.
“We’re excited to have (this) new feature,” McLellan told reporters following Wednesday’s police commission meeting. “When our police officers are interacting with individuals that speak a different language, we’re able to push on our body worn camera what language it is that needs to be interpreted and that will be translated in real time.
“It’s included in the body worn cameras that we have, and it’s just an extra tool that we’ve been able to switch on.”
Calgary police commission chair Amtul Siddiqui said the feature will improve communication between officers and community members.
“Anything that we can do from a service or commission level to be more inclusive in the city that we serve — that’s fantastic,” Siddiqui said. “I’m super excited.”
“This is going to be great not only for community members but for officers as well, because it provides that back-and-forth communication and evidence as well,” the commission chair added.
Sally Zhao, president and CEO of The Immigrant Education Society, said the tool should allow for better interactions between diverse communities and police officers by minimizing miscommunication tied to language barriers.
A Calgary police officer with a body worn camera on Thursday, September 10, 2020.
“We think this is a very positive step toward clearer, safer, inclusive interactions between police officers and diverse communities, especially newcomers,” Zhao said. “Any tools which can help people to communicate in a respectful, clearer way is welcome.”
Zhao said many newcomers are hesitant to report incidents to police because of language barriers.
“With this real time translation, we do think it will make the clients feel more comfortable in communicating with police officers,” she said.
Still, Zhao said the technology should not replace human judgement, and safeguards should be in place to monitor the accuracy of translations.
“We don’t want to add another layer of miscommunication (or) misunderstanding,” she said. “Technology is a tool. It never should replace human judgment and cultural competency.”
Police would not provide an exact dollar figure for the initiative but said the feature is to cost several hundred thousand dollars over a five-year contract with Axon, the force’s supplier of body-worn cameras.
Deputy Chief Cory Daley said police share concerns about privacy related to the use of artificial intelligence on body-worn cameras.
“Any kind of use of technology that moves this fast, we need to ensure that we have the appropriate governance and human moderation in line with that,” Daley said.
Daley said CPS has a “robust” governance process for new technology to ensure public trust, transparency and “bias-free implementation.”
“We’ll continue to adapt and adopt new processes as the technology enhances and moves along through the process,” he said.
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