SAN DIEGO POLICE DEPARTMENT
PROCEDURE

DATE:

June 19, 2015

NUMBER:

1.50

SUBJECT:

FACIAL RECOGNITION

RELATED POLICY:

N/A

ORIGINATING DIVISION:

OPERATIONAL SUPPORT

NEW PROCEDURE:
PROCEDURAL CHANGE:
SUPERSEDES:



I.



NEW

PURPOSE
This Department procedure establishes guidelines for Department personnel using facial
recognition field identification technology.

II.

SCOPE
This procedure applies to all members of the Department.

III.

BACKGROUND
San Diego regional law enforcement mobile facial recognition technology was developed
for the express purpose of assisting officers in identifying persons lawfully detained or
otherwise the subject of a criminal investigation, when those persons are unwilling or
unable to provide proof of their identity as required by law.

IV.

DEFINITIONS
A.

Face First – An Android facial recognition application that operates over secure
cellular wireless connectivity. A probe image is acquired then transmitted to the
application, where a biometric algorithm compares the probe image with images
already on file and associated with personal identifying information. The
application then returns a photographic list of potential match candidates back to
the officer via the Android device.

 DP 1.50 - Facial Recognition
6/19/2015

The officer reviews the list and makes a judgment, based on a visual assessment,
whether the person present matches a photo within the candidate list.

V.

B.

TACIDS (Tactical Identification System) – The regional facial recognition system
ARJIS, in cooperation with the San Diego Sheriff’s Department’s Jail Information
Management System, maintains in support of legitimate law enforcement efforts
to provide public safety.

C.

Enrolled image – Sheriff’s booking photograph from TACIDS database.

PROCEDURES
When practical, and when it will not negatively impact officer safety, law enforcement
officers should first request verification of an individual’s identity through a query of his
or her name, date of birth, and other self-reported identifiers. When verification is not
possible, or if the officer reasonably suspects the self-reported information is false,
officers may request facial recognition field identification results.
A.

Obtaining Probe Images for Comparison
The policy of the San Diego Police Department in regards to taking photographs
of individuals is the same for juveniles and adults. An officer may photograph a
person either in the field or at a police station under the following conditions:

B.

1.

The person is under arrest for a crime; or

2.

The person is being detained as a suspect in a particular crime; or

3.

The person is being legally detained for a criminal investigation.

Requesting Facial Recognition Comparison Information
Officers may request a facial recognition comparison from TACIDS for the
following reasons:

C.

1.

To identify a suspect of a criminal investigation; or

2.

To aid in locating a missing person; or

3.

To identify an individual for whom a warrant has been issued.

Deletion of Stored Images on Device

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After completing the request for facial recognition field identification results, the
image used for comparison shall be manually deleted from the device used to
capture the image.

VI.

RESTRICTIONS
A.

B.

C.

Law enforcement officers shall not request facial recognition field identification
results when an individual presents a valid driver license or state identification
card unless:
1.

The officer reasonably suspects the driver license or identification card is
forged, altered, or otherwise fraudulent; or

2.

The officer reasonably suspects the individual is presenting, as his or her
own, a driver license or identification card issued to another person.

Law enforcement officers shall only access the personal identifying information
of an individual whose facial image is contained in the results of a facial
recognition field identification query:
1.

After determining that the individual’s enrolled image reasonably matches
the probe image submitted for comparison; or

2.

When the personal identifying information of the person in the enrolled
comparison photo would reasonably assist the officer in verifying the
identity of the person arrested or detained.

Dissemination of facial images and other personal identifying information
obtained through the use of a facial recognition field identification tool is
prohibited, subject only to the following specific exceptions:
1.

Public Safety exception – When the Chief of Police reasonably determines
that an individual poses a threat of substantial harm to the public, facial
images and relevant personal identifying information may be released to
the public.

2.

Warrant exception – When a warrant has been issued for a known suspect,
and the suspect’s facial image has been verified, the suspect’s facial image
may be publicly disclosed for the purpose of locating the suspect or
protecting the public.

3.

Missing Person exception – Upon verification, the facial image of an
individual reported missing may be publicly disclosed to help authorities
locate the missing person.

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VII.

TRAINING
Department Members shall be trained in the following areas prior to utilizing facial
recognition field identification:
A.

The proper and legal use of facial images for facial recognition purposes;

B.

How to take high quality facial images in the field for best results;

C.

How to interpret the facial recognition comparison results obtained via a facial
recognition field identification tool and not base decisions entirely upon the
comparison results;

D.

The appropriate use and sharing of information obtained from a facial recognition
identification tool; and

E.

The deletion of the probe image used for comparison from the device used to
capture the image.

Members who have not received this training may not utilize facial recognition field
identification technology.

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