Immigration Judges Use Automation To Help Decide Who Gets Jailed

Immigration judges are using data, algorithms, and automated risk assessment tools to help them determine a particular immigrant’s likelihood of posing a danger to the community or becoming a flight risk.  On the one hand, such tools can help judges make better, less biased decisions, and keep people out of detention when it’s not necessary.  After all, the U.S. already incarcerates about 400,000 non-citizens per year.

On the other hand, these tools pose the danger to perpetuate racial disparities in making these incarceration decisions.

Risk Assessment and Immigration Court

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