Ethical Frameworks for Public Safety Analytics

Although the volume of public safety-related data has increased dramatically in recent years, and associated analytic techniques and technologies have similarly advanced, ethical frameworks to guide the responsible use of data to promote community safety and wellbeing do not seem to have kept pace. Rather, we seem to be engaging in a game of “ethical catch-up,” where comparatively underdeveloped ethical frameworks are being applied in an ad hoc manner after increasingly advanced analytics and emerging technologies have already been applied. Ethical reasoning frameworks that can be flexibly used to guide decision-making across the data lifecycle, including in response to novel and/or complex situations that have bearing on community safety and wellbeing, are important, not only to maintain analytic integrity, but to promote public trust in a rapidly evolving technological landscape. This chapter provides an overview of existing frameworks and resources, identifies common ethical pitfalls and gaps, reviews key ethical principles, and presents a sample framework that can be used to guide ethical decision-making in daily operations, novel circumstances, and high-stakes situations.