Mediaboss Marketing

DETROIT A Michigan man is suing the Detroit Police Department in federal court after he was wrongfully arrested and jailed for shoplifting.

Robert Williams, a Black man, was arrested at his home in a Detroit suburb in front of his wife and two young daughters after a police officer called him at work and told him to turn himself in, but didnt say what for, according to a video produced by the American Civil Liberties Union. Williams thought the call was a prank. He was arrested later that day.

Williams experience was the first case of wrongful arrest due to facial recognition technology to come to light in the United States, according to reports.

I came home from work and was arrested in my driveway in front of my wife and daughters, who watched in tears, because a computer made an error, Williams said in a statement. This never should have happened, and I want to make sure that this painful experience never happens to anyone else.

The lawsuit states that Williams Fourth Amendment rights were violated and his wrongful arrest is in violation of the Michigan Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act. It seeks damages and policy changes to stop the use of facial recognition technology by the DPD. Williams is represented by the University of Michigan Law Schools Civil Rights Litigation Initiative (CRLI), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the ACLU of Michigan.

Weve repeatedly urged the Detroit Police Department to abandon its use of this dangerous technology, but it insists on using it anyhow, said Phil Mayor, senior staff attorney for the ACLU of Michigan. Justice requires that DPD and its officers be held accountable.

Williams was arrested in January 2020 for a 2018 theft of five watches, worth $3,800, from a Shinola store in Detroit, according to an article from The New York Times that broke the story in June.

DPD officers tried to identify the shoplifter by feeding a blurry image from the stores surveillance video through facial recognition technology, which matched the image with Williams and led to his arrest, the release said.

Williams was held for 30 hours in the Detroit Detention Center where he was forced to sleep on a cement floor due to overcrowding, according to the release.

The lawsuit cites studies that show facial recognition technology is faulty when it comes to identifying Black people especially in cases, like this one, when the photo is grainy, the lighting is poor and the suspect is not looking at the camera, the release said.

The technology is racially biased, flawed and easily leads to false arrests of innocent people, just like our client, said Jeremy Shur, a student attorney with CRLI.

READ MORE:

Michigan woman files lawsuit against official who allegedly threatened her with a rifle

Ambulance carrying patient crashes with SUV then through fence, brick wall

Michigan man accidentally shot himself in the leg, saved by DNR officer

Woman claims bomb in stolen vehicle after fleeing police in Northern Michigan

Man accused of sexual assault, torturing teen sisters with a hammer takes plea deal

See the original post here:
Michigan man sues police for wrongful arrest based on facial recognition technology - MLive.com

HUNTINGTON The city of Huntington recently issued a cease-and-desist order to a business on 4th Avenue.

The city said Pops Lounge, located at 1110 4th Ave., was advertised as an illegal bar. The Huntington Police Department became aware of the bar through social media posts.

A news release from the city said the lessee of the property had repeatedly and unsuccessfully attempted to get a business license to operate a bar on the property.

During the past 18 months, the City of Huntington has experienced several episodes wherein illegal bars have opened unexpectedly, and violent criminal activity has ensued, the release said.

In addition to issuing the cease-and-desist order, the release said the city will follow with that action with the securing of the necessary warrant or warrants to conduct a raid on the premises should an illegal bar open.

Tracy Phillips, the owner of Pops Lounge, said he applied for a city business license but it was ultimately denied. Phillips, a Black man, said he believes he was denied a license to open because of racism within the city. He said he tried to get a city license for about seven months, originally to put his second business, Spudz Potatoes, at 1110 4th Ave. and then later for Pops Lounge.

Phillips held private family events at Pops Lounge because he didnt want the place to stay empty, he said.

I do feel like there is a serious racism problem in this city as far as when Blacks try to open up businesses, Phillips said.

Phillips told The Herald-Dispatch he plans to seek legal action, but does not have a lawyer yet. He now plans to open Pops Lounge as a gourmet hot dog business and attempt to obtain a liquor license in the future for that restaurant.

If Mr. Phillips wants to make those allegations (of racism) in court, we will successfully defend ourselves, City Communications Director Bryan Chambers said.

Phillips moved Spudz Potatoes to a different location, 941 4th Ave. It is currently open for business. Chambers said Spudz Potatoes was issued a business license and certificate of occupancy last week.

City attorney Scott Damron said Friday that he has not heard personally from Phillips or anyone else with Pops Lounge. He said Phillips was denied a license for a bar because he is disqualified from obtaining a liquor license in West Virginia. Because of privacy, Damron said the city cannot disclose a disqualifying reason.

We informed him that if he was able to obtain (a West Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control Administration) license from the state of West Virginia, we would issue a business license to him for a bar, Damron said.

He added that it was the citys understanding that Phillips would not qualify in the future for an ABCA license, thus he would not be eligible for a city license to operate a bar.

Damron said the Huntington Police Department had not visited Pops Lounge while it was in operation. He said, upon information and belief, the lounge was in illegal operation once or a few times and HPD was made aware of operations after the fact.

Phillips said police visited Pops Lounge five or six times.

Damron said that if the city finds future attempts of illegal business operations in general, We will find out about it and shut it down.

The cease-and-desist order comes as two possible ordinances relating to illegal business operations have been discussed at Huntington City Council meetings.

At Mondays meeting, council voted to amend one of the ordinances, which relates to inspections after a business license has been issued. As amended, the ordinance says the director of the Division of Finance will notify the mayor or the mayors designee within a week of issuing a business license. Within a month, the mayor or the designee may inspect the business to determine whether the business is being conducted in a manner consistent with the licensing information and in a lawful manner. Periodic inspections would be allowed to follow.

Because the ordinance was amended in a 6-5 vote, it will have a second reading at the next City Council meeting April 26.

The council also discussed another ordinance Monday relating to adult game rooms. The ordinance provides definitions for what businesses are adult game rooms and requirements that they must meet in order to operate within the city, such as getting licenses from the city and the ABCA to serve alcohol. This ordinance will have a second reading at the next City Council meeting.

The American Civil Liberties Union of West Virginia sent Damron a letter via email regarding the amendment Monday during the City Council meeting. According to a copy of the letter, the ACLU-WV had concerns with the proposed ordinance going against Fourth Amendment rights in the U.S. Constitution. The ordinance did not provide a mechanism for business owners to contest a government search.

It is not a legitimate government interest to blanketly permit warrantless searches of businesses, said the ACLU letter, which was signed by Legal Director Loree Stark. Law enforcement have a venue by which they may do that in a way that is constitutionally compliant: establishing cause sufficient to procure a warrant.

We dont agree with their reading of the ordinance, Damron said Friday.

He said the city did send a response to the ACLU. Stark did not return a request for comment Friday.

The ordinances are needed, Damron said, because they apply to an issue over the last 18 months. The city has previously said that some businesses have attempted to obtain a business license but operate illegally.

McKenna Horsley is a reporter for The Herald-Dispatch. Follow her on Twitter @mckennahorsley.

Go here to read the rest:
City sends cease-and-desist order to downtown bar - Huntington Herald Dispatch

A man who was wrongfully arrested based on facial recognition technology is suing the City of Detroits police department.

The lawsuit has been filed by the University of Michigan Law Schools Civil Rights Litigation Initiative (CRLI) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) on behalf of Robert Williams.

The lawsuit says Williams experience was the first case of wrongful arrest due to facial recognition technology to come to light in the United States.

The police department has blamed poor investigative work rather than the technology.

Detroit police arrested Williams at his home in January 2020 after examining security footage from a shoplifting incident which took place in 2018, when several expensive watches were allegedly stolen. Facial recognition technology was used on a grainy image from the video, and the system flagged Williams as a potential match based on an expired drivers licence photo.

The image was used in a picture line-up that was shown to a security guard. The guard, who hadnt actually witnessed the shoplifting incident and had only viewed the surveillance video, picked Williams out and the police department obtained an arrest warrant.

Williams, who had been driving home from work outside of Detroit when the shoplifting incident took place, spent 30 hours in a detention centre. The case was later dropped.

The lawsuit claims Williams Fourth Amendment rights were violated and that his arrest violated the Michigan Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.

Williams is Black and the case reinforces concerns about the accuracy and potential bias in facial recognition systems, especially in instances where image quality and lighting are poor and the suspect is not looking at the camera.

A 2019 studyby the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) found that face recognition algorithms misidentified African-American and Asian faces up to 100 times more frequently than white faces.

Several US cities have now banned facial recognition technology in light of these concerns and others, including Portland which prohibited its use by private companies as well as internal departments. Many police agencies, though, still use face recognition systems.

We know that facial recognition technology threatens everyones privacy by turning everybody into a suspect, saidPhil Mayor, senior staff attorney for the ACLU of Michigan.Weve repeatedly urged the Detroit Police Department to abandon its use of this dangerous technology, but it insists on using it anyhow.Justice requires that DPD and its officers be held accountable.

The lawsuit seeks undisclosed damages and policy changes on facial recognition technology.

Lawrence T. Garcia, City of Detroit Corporation Counsel, told Cities Today: As the police chief has explained, the arrest was the result of shoddy investigation not faulty technology. The arrest took place before the pandemic, and in the time since, the Detroit Police Department has conducted an internal investigation and has sustained misconduct charges relative to several members of the department. New protocols have been put in place by DPD to prevent similar issues from occurring.

The Law Department will seek to achieve resolution of Mr. Williams claims on terms that are fair to him and the City, he added.

Like what you are reading? Register now to get FREE access to premium content and to receive our newsletter.

LoginRegister

See more here:
Detroit sued over facial recognition arrest error - Cities Today

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--White Oak ABL, LLC (White Oak), an affiliate of White Oak Global Advisors, LLC, announced it provided a second $10 million line increase and extension, bringing the total ABL Credit Facility to $95 million, to Hunt & Sons, Inc., a third-generation, family-owned diversified petroleum products distributor. This is the fourth amendment closed between the firms.

We are thrilled to partner with and fund the ongoing success of Hunt & Sons to support their acquisitions and provide them with the flexible working capital they need to achieve their business goals, said White Oak ABL Managing Director Clark D. Griffith. We believe their strong position in the marketplace and our scalable solutions will continue to generate positive outcomes.

Founded in 1946 and headquartered in Sacramento, California, Hunt & Sons specializes in commercial fleet fueling services, bulk fuel supply and comprehensive lubricant solutions for industrial, commercial and agricultural use.

White Oak is a hands-on partner whose reliable funding has helped our company make two key acquisitions during uncertain markets, said Joshua Hunt, CEO of Hunt & Sons. Their creative thinking and ready capital have enabled us to move our business forward with certainty and we look forward to our continued partnership.

About White Oak Global Advisors

White Oak Global Advisors, LLC is a leading global alternative asset manager specializing in originating and providing financing solutions to facilitate the growth, refinancing and recapitalization of small and medium enterprises. Since its inception in 2007, White Oak Global Advisors disciplined investment process focuses on delivering risk-adjusted investment returns and establishing long term partnerships with our borrowers. For more information, visit http://www.whiteoaksf.com.

Read more:
White Oak ABL Line Increase and Extension Reaches $95MM Credit Facility With Hunt & Sons, Inc. - Business Wire

This undated and unlocated handout image released by the Wisconsin Department of Justice on August 28, 2020, shows Kenosha Police Officer Rusten Sheskey, who opened fire on Jacob Blake during his attempted arrest on Aug. 23.(Photo: -, Getty Images)

The Kenosha police officer who shot Jacob Blake in the back in August, touching off days of violent protest in the city, has returned to regular duty and won't face any administrative discipline.

District Attorney Michael Graveley announced in Januarythat Rusten Sheskey would face no criminal charges in the Aug. 23 incident that left Blake paralyzed from the waist down.

On Tuesday, Chief Daniel Miskinis issued a press release on Twitter stating that Sheskey has also been cleared of breaking any internal policies, and has been back on duty aftermonths of administrative leave since March 31.

"Although this incident has been reviewed on multiplelevels, I know that some will not be pleased with the outcome," Miskinis wrote. "However, given the facts, the only lawful and appropriate decision was made."

Jacob Blake speaking from his hospital bed in a video posted to Twitter on Saturday.(Photo: Elliot Hughes / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

The news came the same day that a suburban Minneapolis police officer, Kim Potter, resigned after she fatally shot Daunte Wright during a traffic stop. Her boss, Brooklyn Center, Minn., Police Chief Tim Gannon, who had told reporters that Potter thought she was firing her Taser, not her gun, and referred to the shooting as an accident, also resigned Tuesday.

In the Kenosha incident, an investigation by the state Department of Justice found Blake was armed with a knife in the moments that led up to the shooting. Graveley said he could not disprove Sheskey's claim that he feared for his life when he fired seven shots at Blake.

On March 25, Blake filed a federal civil rights lawsuit for damages against Sheskey.

Blake claims Sheskey's use of deadly force was excessive, violated Blake's rights under the Fourth Amendment's protections against unreasonable seizure, and was done with "malice, willfulness, and reckless indifference" to Blake's rights.

One of Blake's attorneys, Patrick Salvi Jr., called Tuesday's revelation that Sheskey had returned to full duty without discipline very surprising.

"How can anyone say this is a desired result for a police encounter?" Salvi asked. He called it "a very sad state of affairs" if Kenosha police truly believe Sheskey acted in accordance with policy and training.

"But that's not true and we'll prove it in ourlawsuit," Salvi said.

Sheskey's attorneys in that case did not immediately return calls seeking comments.

Protest and violence quickly followed Blake's shooting, which was captured on video by a neighbor.Sheskey fired seven shots at Blake as he was trying to enter a car, after ignoring officers' orders to drop a knife.

The Kenosha County Courthouse area, as well as Uptown a few blocks away,was subjected to three nights of protesting marred by vandalism, arson and, on the third night, deadly shootings.

It was late on Aug. 25 when then 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse used the assault-style rifle he had been carrying all evening to kill Joseph Rosenbaum, 36, and Anthony Huber, 26, and wound Gaige Grosskreutz, 27.

Rittenhouse faces several felonies, has pleaded not guilty, and has been free on $2 million bail largely raised through social media among conservatives and gun rights advocates. His lawyers say he acted in self-defense. His trialis set for November.

ContactBruce Vielmetti at (414) 224-2187or bvielmetti@jrn.com. Followhim on Twitter at @ProofHearsay.

Our subscribers make this reporting possible. Please consider supporting local journalism by subscribing to the Journal Sentinel at jsonline.com/deal.

Read or Share this story: https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/2021/04/13/rusten-sheskey-officer-who-shot-jacob-blake-back-duty/7211243002/

Read more:
Kenosha officer who shot Jacob Blake in the back returns to full duty, won't face any discipline - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel