A Florida man is suing several law enforcement agencies for his arrest and prosecution after he was wrongly identified by faulty AI facial recognition software. Robert Dillon was arrested at his home in Fort Myers, more than 300 miles from Jacksonville Beach, where a crime allegedly occurred.
The Incident
According to the Jacksonville Beach police department, an algorithm returned a 93% probability that Dillon was the man seen on security cameras at a McDonald's attempting to lure a girl under 12. Dillon told detectives he had never been to Jacksonville Beach. The case was dismissed in 2024.
Lawsuit Details
The 52-year-old has filed a lawsuit against the police department, the Jacksonville sheriff's office, and Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, whose agency operates the Faces system. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed the lawsuit on Dillon's behalf.
The lawsuit alleges that Dillon's case is at least the 15th nationally involving a false identification. A Guardian investigation found oversight of AI facial recognition is inadequate.
Key Allegations:
- Lead investigator Scott O'Connell omitted exculpatory evidence from the arrest affidavit.
- License plate readers showed no Dillon vehicles near the restaurant.
- A low-quality cellphone screenshot was used in the Faces software.
- A McDonald's employee identified Dillon as a regular customer, despite him living hundreds of miles away.
Nate Freed Wessler of the ACLU stated: "These Florida police departments owe it to Mr Dillon to make amends."
Similar Cases
In a similar case, Jalil Richardson of Charlotte, North Carolina, was extradited to Jacksonville and jailed for nearly three months after facial recognition placed him at a car theft, though timecards showed he was at work 400 miles away.
Dillon said: "Over a year later, I'm still picking up the pieces of my life." The Guardian has contacted the Jacksonville Beach police department for comment.
