Stephen Krzyston on Blogger: January 2020

Friday, January 17, 2020

NACDL Commends California on Banning Police Facial Recognition Cameras

Police man Photo by Fred Moon on Unsplash

Based in Columbia, South Carolina, Stephen Krzyston is a legal professional who has close to a decade of experience in the industry, and who serves as an attorney with Cavanaugh & Thickens. Stephen Krzyston is also a member of several professional organizations, including the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL).

The NACDL looks to continually improve the criminal justice system, and recently commended the California legislature for banning the use of facial recognition software on police body cameras. The NACDL had pushed for the move for several years, including in its 2017 “Policing Body Cameras: Policies and Procedures to Safeguard the Rights of the Accused” report.

In the report, it argued against the collection of biometric surveillance and facial recognition data by police body cameras. As such, it welcomed the “Body Camera Accountability Act (AB 1215),” which was signed into law by California Governor Gavin Newsom and bans the collection of this information for the next 3 years.

About Stephen Krzyston

The recipient of a bachelor's degree in Political Science from the College of Charleston in South Carolina, Stephen Krzyston subsequently earned a Juris Doctorate from the Charleston School of Law and has since completed legal coursework at the National Forensic College and National Criminal Defense College. Stephen Krzyston began his legal career in 2009 as an intern with the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia. He went on to hold law clerk positions with several indigent defense agencies and a firm focused on plaintiff's pleadings.

After being sworn to the South Carolina Bar in November of 2012, Stephen Krzyston focused his practice on criminal defense with the Fifth Circuit Public Defender in Richland County, where he provided representation to individuals charged with murder, manslaughter, robbery, drug possession, driving under the influence, burglary, and arson, among other offenses. In addition to client representation, he often served, and continues to serve, as a reference point for other attorneys when they are confronted with complex forensic issues relating to criminal litigation.

Supplementing nearly a decade of legal experience either as a law clerk or attorney, Mr. Krzyston holds membership with the National and South Carolina Associations of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the National College for DUI Defense, and the Richland County Bar Association.