PASSAGE OF THE DAY: "Even the general public understands that “having a face that resembles the face of a criminal, without more, does not make anyone guilty of anything,” says Killinger’s new complaint by attorney Terri Keyser-Cooper. “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,” it says. Not providing training on facial recognition software puts Reno residents and visitors at risk of false arrest, the lawsuit adds."
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PASSAGE TWO OF THE DAY: "The new filing expands on how the city pursued legal action against Killinger even after his real identity was confirmed by a fingerprint check at Washoe County jail. The day after Killinger was arrested and eventually released, Officer Jager filed a police report saying that Killinger gave conflicting IDs to Peppermill security. “Jager has since admitted that Killinger at no time ‘presented’ to the Peppermill conflicting identification or possessed conflicting identification,” the amended lawsuit says."
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PASSAGE THREE OF THE DAY: "After the arrest report was submitted, city prosecutors filed a criminal complaint against Killinger under the name “John Doe” and a Reno municipal judge found probable cause for Killinger to be arrested on a trespass charge. A trial was ordered, and even after the case was dismissed, Reno city attorney Jill Drake kept open the door for future prosecution, the lawsuit claims. The city attorney wrote emails saying she found Killinger’s original attorney “cocky” and that she would “love” to find a way to prove a case against Killinger, according to the lawsuit."
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STORY: "Reno police made thousands of unlawful arrests using face ID, suit says," by Reporter Mark Robison, published by The Reno Gazette Journal, on April 7, 2026. (Mark Robison is the state politics reporter for the Reno Gazette Journal, with occasional forays into other topics."
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- KEY POINTS: "The Reno Police Department has not implemented a policy on facial recognition software despite widespread knowledge of its limitations, lawsuit says.
- The city of Reno pursued legal action against Jason Killinger even after his identity was confirmed, it says."
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A failure to train Reno police officers on facial recognition software has led to thousands of unlawful arrests, a new legal filing alleges.
It’s part of Jason Killinger’s lawsuit against a police officer and the city of Reno.
Officer Richard Jager arrested Killinger at the Peppermill after the casino’s facial recognition software claimed he was a 100% match for someone else who’d been banned for sleeping on the property.
The April 2 filing comes after federal Judge Miranda Du agreed with Killinger that the city could be added as a defendant along with Jager to his lawsuit.
It also details how the city continued to pursue legal action against Jager even after his real identity was confirmed.
The city did not respond to a request for comment on the new complaint and its claim that RPD has engaged in numerous unlawful arrests.
No Reno Police Department training about limits of facial recognition software
As of April 2, 2026, the Reno Police Department has not implemented a policy on facial recognition software or required officers to be trained that a match is not enough by itself to create probable cause for an arrest, Killinger’s lawsuit says.
Not having probable cause to make an arrest is considered a violation of constitutional rights.
The new legal filing claims law enforcement agencies have known for years that computer facial recognition matches should not be the only basis for arresting someone, yet the Reno Police Department maintained such a policy under Chief Kathryn Nance anyway.
In 2017, the U.S. Department of Justice put out a policy template for law enforcement agencies saying facial recognition matches are "advisory in nature" and "do not establish probable cause." Numerous jurisdictions have since taken up this guidance.
Even the general public understands that “having a face that resembles the face of a criminal, without more, does not make anyone guilty of anything,” says Killinger’s new complaint by attorney Terri Keyser-Cooper.
“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,” it says.
Not providing training on facial recognition software puts Reno residents and visitors at risk of false arrest, the lawsuit adds.
The city attorney’s office, which represents Jager, says the officer behaved properly.
When he was unable to definitively determine Killinger's true identity, the city attorney's office wrote in an earlier legal filing, Jager followed protocol by arresting Killinger in order to get a fingerprint check that would confirm who he was.
City of Reno pursued legal actions against Jason Killinger after real identity confirmed
The new filing expands on how the city pursued legal action against Killinger even after his real identity was confirmed by a fingerprint check at Washoe County jail.
The day after Killinger was arrested and eventually released, Officer Jager filed a police report saying that Killinger gave conflicting IDs to Peppermill security.
“Jager has since admitted that Killinger at no time ‘presented’ to the Peppermill conflicting identification or possessed conflicting identification,” the amended lawsuit says.
Jager's arrest report claims Killinger identified himself as another man about six months earlier, it continues.
“This again is a false statement,” the lawsuit says.
The arrest report did not include that Killinger had three forms of ID in his pocket – including a Real ID – nor did it mention he pleaded with the officer to offer more forms of identification out in his vehicle, it says.
After the arrest report was submitted, city prosecutors filed a criminal complaint against Killinger under the name “John Doe” and a Reno municipal judge found probable cause for Killinger to be arrested on a trespass charge.
A trial was ordered, and even after the case was dismissed, Reno city attorney Jill Drake kept open the door for future prosecution, the lawsuit claims.
The city attorney wrote emails saying she found Killinger’s original attorney “cocky” and that she would “love” to find a way to prove a case against Killinger, according to the lawsuit.
Drake eventually agreed to dismiss the case but without prejudice, meaning it could be brought again, and stated she would refer the case to an RPD fraud detective for investigation into whether Killinger had committed identity theft. The judge indicated the city had one year to bring additional charges or re-open the case.
“Thus,” the lawsuit says, “the nightmare for Killinger continued.”
The RPD fraud investigator reportedly sided with Killinger and determined the Peppermill "screwed up."
“She wrote an email stating there was no ‘identity theft’ and Killinger was an innocent person,” the lawsuit says. “She made clear that RPD could not charge Killinger with the serious charge of identity theft to cover up a wrongful arrest.”
Nonetheless, it adds, a Reno sergeant told Jager months later that there was probable cause to move forward against Killinger for identity theft. Jager declined.
What’s next?
The lawsuit argues Killinger is owed punitive damages, compensation for being hurt while handcuffed, and attorney’s fees. No specific monetary amount is requested in the revised lawsuit.
The city will have a few weeks to respond to Killinger’s revised lawsuit.
A jury trial has been requested, but no trial date has been set.
The entire story can be read at:
https://www.rgj.com/story/news/2026/04/07/facial-id-lawsuit-reno-police-unlawful-arrests/89491408007/
PUBLISHER'S NOTE: I am monitoring this case/issue/resource. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog for reports on developments. The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. Please send any comments or information on other cases and issues of interest to the readers of this blog to: hlevy15@gmail.com. Harold Levy: Publisher: The Charles Smith Blog.
FINAL WORD: (Applicable to all of our wrongful conviction cases): "Whenever there is a wrongful conviction, it exposes errors in our criminal legal system, and we hope that this case — and lessons from it — can prevent future injustices."Lawyer Radha Natarajan: Executive Director: New England Innocence Project;
FINAL, FINAL WORD: "Since its inception, the Innocence Project has pushed the criminal legal system to confront and correct the laws and policies that cause and contribute to wrongful convictions. They never shied away from the hard cases — the ones involving eyewitness identifications, confessions, and bite marks. Instead, in the course of presenting scientific evidence of innocence, they've exposed the unreliability of evidence that was, for centuries, deemed untouchable." So true! Christina Swarns: Executive Director: The Innocence Project;
