# How Formerly Incarcerated People Envision Technologies for Prison Parole

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.16513 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.16513/

## Key facts

- No citing papers in the map yet (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 21 of its 188 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 17 Jul 2026.

## Builds on (most cited first, 21 of 21)

- [Fair prediction with disparate impact: A study of bias in recidivism prediction instruments](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1610.07524/) (2016)
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- [Quantifying the Invisible Labor in Crowd Work](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2110.00169/) (2021)
- [The Algorithmic Imprint](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2206.03275/) (2022)
- [Botivist: Calling Volunteers to Action Using Online Bots](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1509.06026/) (2015)
- [Epistemic Power in AI Ethics Labor: Legitimizing Located Complaints](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2402.08171/) (2024)
- [Evidence of What, for Whom? The Socially Contested Role of Algorithmic Bias in a Predictive Policing Tool](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.07715/) (2024)
- [How Platform-User Power Relations Shape Algorithmic Accountability: A Case Study of Instant Loan Platforms and Financially Stressed Users in India](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2205.05661/) (2022)
- [The Fall of an Algorithm: Characterizing the Dynamics Toward Abandonment](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2404.13802/) (2024)
- [Crowd Coach: Peer Coaching for Crowd Workers' Skill Growth](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1811.05364/) (2018)
- [Flipping the Script on Criminal Justice Risk Assessment: An actuarial model for assessing the risk the federal sentencing system poses to defendants](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2205.13505/) (2022)
- [The Progression of Disparities within the Criminal Justice System: Differential Enforcement and Risk Assessment Instruments](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2305.07575/) (2023)
- [Structural Interventions and the Dynamics of Inequality](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.01323/) (2024)
- [Co-Designing Collaborative Generative AI Tools for Freelancers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.05299/) (2026)
- [TurkScanner: Predicting the Hourly Wage of Microtasks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1903.07032/) (2019)
- [Becoming the Super Turker: Increasing Wages via a Strategy from High Earning Workers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2005.06021/) (2020)
- [Organizational Governance of Emerging Technologies: AI Adoption in Healthcare](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2304.13081/) (2023)
- [Designing Sousveillance Tools for Gig Workers](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2403.09986/) (2024)
- [After You, Please: Browser Extensions Order Attacks and Countermeasures](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1908.02205/) (2019)

## Abstract (arXiv)

AI-driven algorithms and automated tools are increasingly embedded in the correctional landscape, shaping parole eligibility,release decisions, and surveillance. These tools are also often framed as objective, inevitable solutions to inefficiency andbias. Yet, these computational systems are rarely designed with input from justice-impacted individuals, which means theymight fail to address the real needs of incarcerated people. To address this gap, we surveyed 31 formerly incarcerated peopleabout their parole experiences and their visions for technologies that could support parole preparation. Contrary to dominantassumptions, participants did not imagine computational tools as instruments to dismantle the prison system, but as resourcesfor navigating power: translating complex parole concepts into culturally familiar terms, documenting personal transformationin board-legible ways, and recognizing the often-invisible labor of families. We argue that these imaginaries point towardtechnologies designed for strategic agency, where tools help incarcerated individuals and their families build the capacity tonavigate existing power structures in pursuit of freedom. We conclude by reframing computational tools for parole awayfrom surveillance and toward human-centered systems that support people in navigating carceral power structures.