JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A southwest Florida man, who Action News Jax first reported was wrongly arrested for trying to lure a child in Jacksonville Beach, is now suing the police department and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office for using an AI-based facial recognition system to make the arrest.
We first told you about Robert Dillon’s botched 2024 arrest last July.
“He just told me that I was wanted out of Jacksonville for a warrant. And when we got in the car, he told me that it was for attempted alluring of a child. And of course I’m completely dumbfounded,” Dillon said.
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Since then, we’ve documented one other wrongful arrest case here in Duval using the same technology. Jalil Richardson, from North Carolina, sat in jail here for weeks for a stolen car case.
“There was no proper investigation done, um, to even reach out to me or to see if I was even in Florida,” Richardson said in a previous interview with Action News Jax.
Richardson was set free after his attorney provided timesheets to show he was at work when the crime was committed.
Action News Jax spoke with Dillon and his attorney about their call for a change in policy when it comes to facial recognition. He said he had never been to Jacksonville.
“The only time I’ve ever even been close to Jacksonville is going up 95 towards my hometown,” Dillon said.
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Dillon says neither his case nor Richardson’s should have happened.
“I don’t wish this upon my worst enemy. I was taken away from my home, taken away from my wife, taken way from my child. And it put in a holding cell for hours, put in the back of a van for God knows how long without a seatbelt shackled and chained,” Dillon said.
The lawsuit, filed this week by his legal team, including the American Civil Liberties Union, claims after the arrest, “Mr. Dillon could not work.” It also claims, “The lost income during this period was substantial and contributed to lost business opportunities. Mr. Dillon fell behind on his monthly rent and was forced to ask his landlord for additional time to bring his account current.”
He and his lawyer are pushing for policies for facial recognition to change and accountability from JSO and Jacksonville Beach police.
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“What happened to him is a result of really predictable failures,” Nate Wassler, Dillon’s attorney, said.
“I’m not saying that it’s not a tool in the toolbox. But it doesn’t replace police work. A couple simple steps could have avoided this, but now I’ve been drug through this for two years now,” Dillon said.
Dillon says he’s received no accountability from JSO or Jacksonville Beach police throughout the process.
We reached out to JSO for comment on this lawsuit; they told us they are unable to comment on pending litigation.
JBPD told us, “At the advice of counsel, we are unable to comment related to this matter,” and directed us to their attorney.
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