Thread: India's Courtroom Now Using Brain-Scanning Technology

Via: India's Judges Overrule Scientists on 'Guilty Brain' Tech

I just read about an interesting development within India's court system. Despite warnings from a number of neuroscientists, India is now allowing brain electrical oscillation signature (BEOS) profiling to be used as evidence in the courtroom.

From what I understand, BEOS profiling monitors a suspect's brain images to see if the suspect remembers details of the crime in question.

Leading North American neuroscientists call its use "'fascinating,' 'ridiculous,' 'chilling' and 'unconscionable'" — and Indian scientists agree.

In a recent murder case a few months ago, a judge accepted as evidence the results of a BEOS test and the suspect was sentenced to life imprisonment. The judge explicitly cited the scan as being proof that the suspect's brain held "experiential knowledge" about the crime that only the killer could posses.

From a distance, the case's details are unclear. Prosecutors provided evidence other than BEOS, and Sharma insists on her innocence. But one detail is quite clear: India's courtroom use of brain-scanning technology has outpaced the science behind it.

I totally agree with the statement below by Henry Greely, which was cited in a recent article by the International Herald Tribune: India's use of brain scans in courts dismays critics

"I find this both interesting and disturbing," Henry Greely, a bioethicist at Stanford Law School, said of the Indian verdict. "We keep looking for a magic, technological solution to lie detection. Maybe we'll have it someday, but we need to demand the highest standards of proof before we ruin people's lives based on its application."

Indian court of law has accepted Narcotics tests and lie detection tests before in spite of the gact that some terrorists have allegedly found a way around these as well. I think as long as the technology gives reliable results, there is no harm relying on it.

Originally Posted by jigyasa

Indian court of law has accepted Narcotics tests and lie detection tests before in spite of the gact that some terrorists have allegedly found a way around these as well.

Hi Jigyasa, it's certainly not good that courts are relying on such tests when suspects can find a way round them.

From what I understand, this is the first murder case where the Indian courts accepted the results of a BEOS test.

Originally Posted by jigyasa

I think as long as the technology gives reliable results, there is no harm relying on it.

Many neuroscientists are stating that the BEOS profiling is extremely unreliable.

I just came across a CNN news clip about BEOS and the Indian murder case in which the scan results were relied upon.

According to the video, many suspects are consenting to the brain scan because they fear that saying no might suggest guilt. Also, suspects are agreeing to the test because they want to avoid other methods of police interrogation, such as the third degree.

For those interested, you can watch the CNN video at: CNN Video - Brain scans and justice

An update: Sharma's life imprisonment sentence has been suspended, and she has been granted bail. It was stated that the evidence against Sharma was not compelling, and evidence may have planted in this case.

What's interesting is that there's no mention of the BEOS evidence, which had been cited as proof that Sharma's brain held "experiential knowledge" about the crime.

This is a very interesting topic. I wonder how long it will be before the United States invokes something similar in the court of law. I honestly don't feel that such a technology should be used, there are other methods that can be used to incriminate a suspected killer. WOW!