Traffic stops can be extremely stressful for a number of reasons, and according to Business Insider, nascent artificial intelligence tools are rapidly becoming one of them.
What's happening?
Toledo, Ohio, resident Brandon Upchurch was pulled over by a police officer in April 2024.
Traffic stops aren't generally notable or newsworthy, but in this case, after Upchurch stopped his vehicle, police "drew their guns and ordered him out of his red Dodge Ram."
Upchurch, who was with a cousin at the time, initially refused to exit the truck and repeatedly asked why officers had pulled him over in the first place. Responding officer Adrian Wilson threatened to unleash a police dog if Upchurch didn't "get on the ground."
As he began complying, Wilson let the dog loose, resulting in bites and other injuries to Upchurch.
Ultimately, one of the officers eventually disclosed the reason for the traffic stop: Upchurch's truck allegedly had stolen plates.
He denied the assertion, but after receiving medical attention for the injuries he suffered after he was pulled over, Upchurch was held for hours in the county jail and charged.
However, Upchurch was indeed the legal, registered owner of the Dodge Ram.
Business Insider's review of police records indicated that Flock Safety's AI license plate readers were the culprit, misreading a "7" on Upchurch's tags as a "2" and resulting in a false positive.
Why is this concerning?
As the outlet pointed out, amid myriad AI-related controversies, "less attention has been paid to the tech's accuracy," and a broader review revealed that Upchurch's ordeal "wasn't isolated."
TCD Picks » Quince Spotlight
💡These best-sellers from Quince deliver affordable, sustainable luxury for all
|
Which of these savings plans for rooftop solar panels would be most appealing for you?
Click your choice to see results and earn rewards to spend on home upgrades. |
Save $1,000 this year 💸 Proponents such as Galveston Municipal Police Association President Anthony Rogers maintained that AI tools marketed to law enforcement were useful despite their error rates.
"They have helped us bring justice to victims and victims' families, and in some cases they've helped us to bring quicker justice. They're the friend to an officer," he said. But law enforcement isn't the only place potentially error-prone AI tools are poised to wreak havoc.
AI has roiled the workforce and schools, and experts have warned that the technology has already inflicted measurable damage.
As AI debates persisted across institutions, data centers became another hot-button issue, bringing noise and air pollution to once-quiet communities. Data centers were initially controversial in their vicinities, but that quickly changed.
Throughout 2025, electric bills across the country increased sharply, exacerbating the ongoing cost-of-living crisis.
As of late February, nearly one in five American households had past-due energy bills, putting them at risk of utility shut-offs.
What's being done about it?
Flock, the company behind the camera, drew significant backlash over a Super Bowl ad for surveillance technology, prompting Amazon's Ring to cut ties with the firm in January.
More broadly, American communities began objecting to new data centers, halting $98 billion in facility development in late 2025.
As for Upchurch, charges against him resulting from the stop were dropped in August 2024, and he received a $35,000 settlement from the city of Toledo.
Get TCD's free newsletters for easy tips to save more, waste less, and make smarter choices — and earn up to $5,000 toward clean upgrades in TCD's exclusive Rewards Club.
Cool Picks
