Robots that can run headcounts or detect if a detainee needs medical help have made their way to the Cobb County jail, with new technology continuing to change how law enforcement operates.
At a live demonstration this week, Cobb County Sheriff Craig Owens said his three new employees don’t have names yet, but they do know his.
“Sheriff Owens, we meet again!” one of the so-called “jailbots” said.
“We sure do,” Owens responded.
According to Owens, Cobb County is the first in the country to use robots in a jail or prison setting. The bots, made by New Hampshire-based DEKA Research and Development, will be part of a 90-day pilot program conducted at Cobb.
The wheeled robots, which stand nearly six feet tall, are equipped with 360-degree cameras, night vision, heat detection, and two-way audio capabilities.
“I think we can work smarter with technology and not harder,” Owens said. “This allows me to shift manpower to some other places inside of the facility to get more things done.”
Owens said the robots will spend half their time working outside the facility and the other half patrolling detainees inside select pods.
“There’ll be no reason for concern,” Owens said. “The robots will not really come in contact with [detainees]. There’ll be a mechanism that says, ‘Sentry Robot on duty. Please stand back 20 feet, 30 feet. Do not touch.’ So, there’ll be that verbal warning.”
However, Terrica Ganzy, executive director of the Southern Center for Human Rights, has her doubts. The nonprofit has successfully sued Fulton County multiple times over its jail conditions.
“When we start thinking about needing to use robots, it raises a red flag to me that they are not currently doing what is necessary to protect people incarcerated,” Ganzy said.
She said while the robots aren’t going to cure chronic understaffing in jails, they could potentially create privacy issues.
“Who has access to this information? Where is it being saved? Is it being saved? What do they claim to do with it?” Ganzy said, noting that these are the questions she is asking herself.
For now, the robots are operating at no cost to taxpayers. The sheriff’s office will decide whether or not to keep them when the pilot program ends.
