The parent firm of Sunglass Hut is being sued by a 61-year-old man who was incorrectly recognized as a robber by the store’s face recognition technology. According to the lawsuit, Harvey Eugene Murphy Jr. was subsequently imprisoned in jail and claims to have been sexually assaulted there.
Two armed robbers stole thousands of dollars worth of cash and items from a Sunglass Hut store in Houston, Texas, in January 2022.
Murphy lived in California at the time, but Houston police still named him as a suspect.
The man didn’t know he would leave in handcuffs when he went to the Gonzales, Texas, DMV to renew his license. The reason for his detention was related to an armed robbery that happened while he was traveling abroad.
According to court documents, the men advised two workers to remain in a back room throughout the robbery so they could escape.
According to a representative for Macy’s, the business would not comment on ongoing legal matters. EssilorLuxottica was contacted by the reporters as well, but they are still waiting to hear back.
According to a press release from the public relations agency, the man argues that he was living in California then and couldn’t have robbed the Sunglass Hut. Two males robbed the business, pointing a gun at the manager and making off with sunglasses and cash worth thousands of dollars.
In the most recent possible case of mistaken identity employing the contentious technology, the individual now demands $10 million from the corporations for what he claims was a wrongful arrest due to the careless use of facial recognition software.
In an interview, Murphy’s attorney, Daniel Dutko, stated that the man does not stop thinking about it every day. The attorney went on to say that these men held a knife to the man’s neck during the rape. According to the document, Murphy was also threatened with death by the men if he reported the attack.
Police received a call throughout their investigation from a loss prevention staff member of Sunglass Hut’s parent business, EssilorLuxottica. According to the lawsuit, the employee assured police that they could end their investigation since he had discovered their guy.
According to the lawsuit, the employee said he collaborated with Macy’s loss prevention to identify the suspect as the individual using facial recognition technology and artificial intelligence.
Faces on surveillance film, such as that of a retail robbery, are frequently matched with photos in a database using facial recognition software. Although the program can scan driver’s license images as well as booking photos, your picture can be searched even if you have never committed a crime if you possess a license.
Murphy most likely has a booking photo because he has a criminal record dating back to the 1980s and 1990s. According to the press release, his attorneys claimed that the charges were not violent and that he had started a new life in the previous 30 years.
The Criminals Threatened To The Man
According to the lawsuit, one of the perpetrators threatened to kill the man if he reported the violent rape to anybody while holding a shank against his neck.
According to the lawsuit, the man slid into his bunk after the attack, faced the wall, and prayed he wouldn’t be attacked again.
The individual was freed from jail a few hours later, but according to the lawsuit, his time there will always be a part of him. The lawsuit went on to say that the man will not forget the vicious attack and rape for even a single hour.
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