Facial Recognition Technology, or “FRT,” is a form of artificial intelligence. Maryland has cases, statutes, and procedural rules that govern the use of facial recognition technology in criminal cases.
I suggest that they reflect many forward-looking principles governing admissibility, and may have persuasive applicability far beyond their circumscribed context. I have posted a 13-minute YouTube blog discussing the Maryland authorities.
Maura R. Grossman & the Hon. Paul W. Grimm (ret.) have published a comprehensive analysis of “Judicial Approaches to Acknowledged and Unacknowledged AI-Generated Evidence,” 26 Columbia Sci. & Tech. L. Rev. 110 (2025), and the Maryland protocols incorporate many of them.
A few examples follow. Maryland courts have recognized the value of AI, while also stating that there is “ample reason” to question FRT. Prosecutors must disclose the use of FRT even without a discovery request. Case law suggests that disclosure must be sufficiently early for the defendant to prepare a defense. Specific information about the use and type of FRT must be disclosed. The statute limits the uses of FRT in court and provides that it may not be used to chill speech or political activity. It also imposes exclusionary sanctions. Additionally, a recent appellate decision held that FRT was inadmissible because of late disclosure and the State’s failure to provide an adequate foundation.
The statute limits the uses of FRT in court and provides that it may not be used to chill speech or political activity.
Michael Berman, Owner, E-Discovery LLC.
Public reports show that, in 2024, FRT was used by six Maryland law enforcement agencies. Six different systems were used. Eighty-six searches were reported, with 49 possible matches. Maryland also has a model policy on the use of FRT. For more information, please see https://youtu.be/VlZxGYOwxwk. The slide show ends with a list of some additional resources.
To borrow Winston Churchill’s words from WW II: “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”
