Law enforcement agencies nationwide are using predictive policing software, yet almost none of their users, past or present, have clear measures for how effective or accurate they are.

Driven by movements for police accountability, civilian oversight agencies have become commonplace across the county. But often politically weak and under-resourced, they fail to live up to the aspirations of the activists that fight for them. In Providence, Rhode Island, a civilian oversight agency works to reestablish its legitimacy.