Wrongly arrested Reno casino guest seeks names of 168 people flagged by facial recognition
Reno produced more than 1,000 pages of records but stripped out identities, arguing privacy and that most of the incidents came after the 2023 arrest
US.- A Nevada truck driver wrongly arrested after facial recognition software at Reno’s Peppermill Casino misidentified him, has asked a federal judge to order the City of Reno to produce unredacted names of 168 other people flagged by the same system.
Jason Killinger wants arrest reports and declarations of probable cause for everyone cited or transported to the Reno Police Department after a facial recognition identification at the property. The request forms part of his lawsuit against the city and Reno police officer Richard Jager over his September 2023 arrest.
Killinger’s lawyers requested the records in April. Reno produced more than 1,000 pages but removed names and other personal information. His motion argues the city had no right to make those redactions without first seeking a protective order.
“Defendants redacted the arrestees’ identities from responsive documents without ever seeking a protective order,” Killinger’s motion reads.
The plaintiff argues the 168 people are “percipient witnesses” whose experiences could show whether Reno had a wider practice of facial recognition-based arrests. Their identities are also relevant, his lawyers argue, because Killinger is seeking injunctive relief and has indicated he may pursue class-action claims.
In a response filed on August 14, Deputy City Attorney Alice Herbolsheimer said the city had already compromised by producing the reports despite disputing their relevance. She said Peppermill had provided only arrest dates, times and initials, and had refused to supply names because of privacy concerns.
Herbolsheimer said only 16 of the 168 incidents occurred before Killinger’s arrest, meaning later cases could not establish that Reno had notice of a facial recognition problem at the time he was detained. A judge has yet to rule on the request.
Peppermill’s system flagged Killinger as a “100 per cent match” for Michael Ellis, a man banned from the venue months earlier for sleeping on the premises. Killinger produced a valid Nevada Real ID, a Peppermill player’s card and a debit card in his own name. Jager accused him of using fraudulent identification.
Killinger is four inches taller than Ellis and has blue eyes rather than hazel. He was jailed for nearly nine hours and spent more than three hours in handcuffs, which left him with bruising and shoulder pain, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges that even after a fingerprint check at Washoe County jail confirmed Killinger’s identity, Jager filed a police report claiming he had presented conflicting identification to Peppermill security.
Killinger settled out of court with Peppermill, then sued Jager and later added the City of Reno. He alleges the city failed to train officers properly on facial recognition and continued to pursue criminal allegations after his identity had been confirmed. The case is pending in the US District Court for the District of Nevada.
