Sentencing And Artificial Intelligence

The first collective work devoted exclusively to the ethical and penal theoretical considerations of the use of artificial intelligence at sentencing Is it morally acceptable to use artificial intelligence (AI) in the determination of sentences on those who have broken the law? If so, how should such algorithms be used--and what are the consequences? Jesper Ryberg and Julian V. Roberts bring together leading experts to answer these questions. Sentencing and Artificial Intelligence investigates to what extent, and under which conditions, justice and the social good may be promoted by allocating parts of the most important task of the criminal court--that of determining legal punishment--to computerized sentencing algorithms. The introduction of an AI-based sentencing system could save significant resources and increase consistency across jurisdictions. But it could also reproduce historical biases, decrease transparency in decision-making, and undermine trust in the justice system. Dealing with a wide-range of pertinent issues including the transparency of algorithmic-based decision-making, the fairness and morality of algorithmic sentencing decisions, and potential discrimination as a result of these practices, this volume offers avaluable insight on the future of sentencing.

"The first collective work devoted exclusively to the ethical and penal theoretical considerations of the use of artificial intelligence at sentencing. Is it morally acceptable to use artificial intelligence (AI) in the determination of sentences on those who have broken the law? If so, how should such algorithms be used--and what are the consequences? Jesper Ryberg and Julian V. Roberts bring together leading experts to answer these questions. Sentencing and Artificial Intelligence investigates to what extent, and under which conditions, justice and the social good may be promoted by allocating parts of the most important task of the criminal court--that of determining legal punishment--to computerized sentencing algorithms. The introduction of an AI-based sentencing system could save significant resources and increase consistency across jurisdictions. But it could also reproduce historical biases, decrease transparency in decision-making, and undermine trust in the justice system. Dealing with a wide-range of pertinent issues including the transparency of algorithmic-based decision-making, the fairness and morality of algorithmic sentencing decisions, and potential discrimination as a result of these practices, this volume offers avaluable insight on the future of sentencing."--Publisher

'Is it fair for a judge to increase a defendant's prison time on the basis of an algorithmic score that predicts the likelihood that he will commit future crimes? Many states now say yes, even when the algorithms they use for this purpose have a high error rate, a secret design, and a demonstratable racial bias. The former federal judge Katherine Forrest, in her short but incisive When Machines Can Be Judge, Jury, and Executioner, says this is both unfair and irrational ...' See full reviewJed S RakoffUnited States District Judge for the Southern District of New YorkNew York Review of Books This book explores justice in the age of artificial intelligence. It argues that current AI tools used in connection with liberty decisions are based on utilitarian frameworks of justice and inconsistent with individual fairness reflected in the US Constitution and Declaration of Independence. It uses AI risk assessment tools and lethal autonomous weapons as examples of how AI influences liberty decisions. The algorithmic design of AI risk assessment tools can and does embed human biases. Designers and users of these AI tools have allowed some degree of compromise to exist between accuracy and individual fairness.Written by a former federal judge who lectures widely and frequently on AI and the justice system, this book is the first comprehensive presentation of the theoretical framework of AI tools in the criminal justice system and lethal autonomous weapons utilized in decision-making. The book then provides a comprehensive explanation as to why, tracing the evolution of the debate regarding racial and other biases embedded in such tools. No other book delves as comprehensively into the theory and practice of AI risk assessment tools.

Argues that treating people and artificial intelligence differently under the law results in unexpected and harmful outcomes for social welfare.

The first book to develop standards for the criminal liability of artificial intelligence technologies

The book develops a general legal theory concerning the liability for offenses involving artificial intelligence systems. The involvement of the artificial intelligence systems in these offenses may be as perpetrators, accomplices or mere instruments. The general legal theory proposed in this book is based on the current criminal law in most modern legal systems. In most modern countries, unmanned vehicles, sophisticated surgical systems, industrial computing systems, trading algorithms and other artificial intelligence systems are commonly used for both industrial and personal purposes. The question of legal liability arises when something goes wrong, e.g. the unmanned vehicle is involved in a car accident, the surgical system is involved in a surgical error or the trading algorithm is involved in fraud, etc. Who is to be held liable for these offenses: the manufacturer, the programmer, the user, or, perhaps, the artificial intelligence system itself? The concept of liability for crimes involving artificial intelligence systems has not yet been widely researched. Advanced technologies are forcing society to face new challenges, both technical and legal. The idea of liability in the specific context of artificial intelligence systems is one such challenge that should be thoroughly explored.

The first book to develop standards for the criminal liability of artificial intelligence technologies

The judiciary is in the early stages of a transformation in which AI (Artificial Intelligence) technology will help to make the judicial process faster, cheaper, and more predictable without compromising the integrity of judges' discretionary reasoning. Judicial decision-making is an area of daunting complexity, where highly sophisticated legal expertise merges with cognitive and emotional competence. How can AI contribute to a process that encompasses such a wide range of knowledge, judgment, and experience? Rather than aiming at the impossible dream (or nightmare) of building an automatic judge, AI research has had two more practical goals: producing tools to support judicial activities, including programs for intelligent document assembly, case retrieval, and support for discretionary decision-making; and developing new analytical tools for understanding and modeling the judicial process, such as case-based reasoning and formal models of dialectics, argumentation, and negotiation. Judges, squeezed between tightening budgets and increasing demands for justice, are desperately trying to maintain the quality of their decision-making process while coping with time and resource limitations. Flexible AI tools for decision support may promote uniformity and efficiency in judicial practice, while supporting rational judicial discretion. Similarly, AI may promote flexibility, efficiency and accuracy in other judicial tasks, such as drafting various judicial documents. The contributions in this volume exemplify some of the directions that the AI transformation of the judiciary will take.