Wrongful Casino Arrest Case Raises AI Policing Concerns

At the end of January, we reported on a very peculiar case of wrongful arrest at a casino in Reno in 2023, where law enforcement relied on facial recognition technology a little too much, to put it lightly. 

“100% Match” Led to a Disaster

Three years ago in September, truck driver Jason Killinger was flagged by a system at Peppermill Casino as a “100% match” to another man, Michael Ellis, who had previously been banned from the property. 

The match turned out to be wrong, but Killinger was still detained by security and later put under arrest.

According to a lawsuit, the man was held for 11 hours, including four hours in handcuffs, which left him with bruises and shoulder pain. When he tried to prove his identity, arresting officer Richard Jager reportedly refused to accept the evidence and accused him of using a fraudulent ID.

The situation escalated further when, even after a fingerprint check at the Washoe County jail confirmed Killinger’s identity, the lawsuit claims the officer filed a report stating that Killinger had provided conflicting identification.

In 2017, the US Department of Justice released a policy template for law enforcement agencies, calling facial recognition matches “advisory in nature” and explaining they do not “establish probable cause.” 

City of Reno, Defendant in the Expanded Case

The case has now expanded, with a federal judge allowing the City of Reno to be added as a defendant, citing claims that officials continued pursuing legal action even after Killinger had been cleared. 

The lawsuit also alleges that the police department failed to properly train officers on the limitations of facial recognition systems.

Killinger’s lawyers argue that the issue goes beyond a single mistake, claiming that police were aware that facial recognition results should not be used as the sole basis for arrests but continued to rely on them anyway.

“Jager’s conduct was not a sporadic incident involving the wrongful actions of a rogue employee, but the result of a widespread custom and practice involving hundreds of municipal employees making thousands of arrests in the same manner over a period of years,” the lawsuit claims.

The filing also argues that key evidence was not included in official reports, including fingerprint results that cleared Killinger.

According to the claim, this created a misleading account of events. Killinger is seeking damages, though no specific amount has been disclosed. He previously settled a separate case with the casino before trial.