Latest news with #wrongfularrest
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Daily Mail
Woman plunged into hellish nightmare while driving home from first date in her Toyota Prius
A night that started as a first date in a new city turned into a hellish nightmare for a Florida woman who was wrongfully arrested when a motorcyclist crashed into her car and later died. Hannah Ray, 31, was driving home from a date in her Toyota Prius on December 4, 2022, when she made a left-hand turn down a closed road, and a motorcyclist collided into the side of her car, according to court documents. Paramedics arrived within minutes of the crash, and the motorcyclist, Jeffrey Conner, died from injuries he sustained in the collision. The Clearwater Police Department arrested Ray on a charge of driving under the influence manslaughter — only she wasn't drunk at all. Her blood test came back a few weeks after the arrest and revealed that she had no drugs or alcohol in her system. The Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney's Office then dropped the charges against her. Ray sued the city of Clearwater, arresting officer Scott Yeates, and public information officer Rob Shaw for false arrest and violating her civil rights. The city agreed to settle the lawsuit on Friday for $50,000 in damages. Her lawyer, Tom Wadley, told the Tampa Bay Times that he thought her case was worth more, but it's what the city was willing to offer. Body camera footage of her arrest showed Ray completing sobriety tests and asking officers for a breathalyzer. Ray was making a left-hand turn down a closed road when a motorcyclist crashed into her Toyota Prius 'Can you breathalyze me?' Ray asked Officer Scott Yeates. He replied that the officers would get to it later. 'The Clearwater Police Department videotaped the field sobriety exercises, and the video recordings show that Plaintiff was not staggering, stumbling, swaying, demonstrating any loss of balance, or demonstrating any issues with her speech,' Ray's attorneys argued in court documents. 'Despite this, Plaintiff [Ray] was placed in handcuffs and arrested for DUI manslaughter.' The amended complaint against the city argued that Ray performed several sobriety tests 'flawlessly' and accused Yeates of two 'egregiously false' observations during his investigation. Yeates reported that Ray had 'bloodshot' and 'glassy' eyes. Ray's attorneys argued that she was photographed multiple times at the scene and was pictured with clear eyes. Ray's attorneys also said that Yeates reported her speech was mumbled, but the four hours of body camera footage suggested otherwise. In the video, an officer tells her, 'You are going to go to jail tonight because someone died.' 'This is just my actual worst nightmare,' Ray replied. The footage depicted Ray participating in multiple sobriety tests and even taking off her thigh-high heeled boots without assistance. Yeates had turned his body camera footage off multiple times during the arrest, without verbalizing the reason, which officers are required to do in Florida. The investigation had also concluded that Conner, the motorcyclist, was traveling at 'an excessively high rate of speed,' according to the complaint. Conner's toxicology report found that he was under the influence during the crash, with a blood alcohol content almost three times the Florida legal limit. He also had over 50 arrests, including traffic citations and driving under the influence, before his death, according to the complaint. Ray's attorneys argued that a 'road closed' sign wasn't visible until after she had already made the left-hand turn. Once the charges were dropped, the police department kept Ray's mugshot on their social media page with the caption, 'Clearwater woman charged with DUI Manslaughter after she causes crash that killed a motorcyclist.' The complaint accused Officer Shaw, who operates the social media account, of intentional infliction of emotional distress. Shaw never posted a correction that Ray wasn't drunk and waited six months to take the post down. 'It's damaged her name and reputation for the rest of her life,' Wadley told local ABC affiliate, WFTS. The attorney's office dropped the charges against Ray when her blood tests confirmed she wasn't drunk during the crash During a deposition in April, Yeates stood by his decision to arrest Ray and said he disagreed with his supervisor after her blood results confirmed her sobriety. Wadley asked what the disagreement was about, to which he replied, 'That the state still should have gone forward with the charges,' the Tampa Bay Times reported. 'So she has no alcohol in her system, no drugs in her system, and you felt that they should have gone forward anyway?' Wadley pressed. 'Yes,' Yeates replied. After the crash, Conner moved back home to Indiana. She had moved to Clearwater to start her career as a therapist and lived with her sister. 'It felt so unreal because I had never been in trouble with the law before,' she previously told the Tampa Bay Times. 'I could not have known anything about the criminal legal system or how much corruption goes on because it had never touched me,' she added. 'I wouldn't have known anything I do now unless I went through that.' Ray used her horrific experience to help others and now works as a therapist and volunteers at juvenile centers. She also runs an Instagram page called Community as Therapy, where she shares stories from foster youth and homeless people. 'It troubles me deeply that police who are supposed to protect us are able to falsify records, lie on arrest warrants, and not be held accountable,' Ray said in a statement to WFTS. 'I cannot help but think less than 40 years ago there would have been no body cam footage or DNA evidence to protect me against these accusations. It would have solely been the police's word, vs mine,' she continued. Ray urged others to know their rights and advocated for improvements to the criminal justice system. Daily Mail reached out to the attorneys for Officer Yeates and the City of Clearwater, as well as Clearwater Police, for more information on how the department handled the allegations in the lawsuit.
New York Times
23-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Rulings Order Abrego Garcia's Release and Guard Against Hasty Deportation
A federal judge in Tennessee said on Wednesday that Kilmar Armando Abrego Garcia, the immigrant wrongfully deported to El Salvador, should be freed from custody in his criminal case even as a judge in Maryland issued a separate order protecting him from being hastily expelled from the country again. The convergence of the two judicial rulings, which came within minutes of each other, meant that Mr. Abrego Garcia could soon return to Maryland, where he had been living with his family before his monthslong ordeal of arrest, deportation and imprisonment in El Salvador began in March. For the past few weeks, deep uncertainty has loomed over Mr. Abrego Garcia's future as the Justice Department signaled that it intended to begin immediate efforts to re-deport him if he were released from custody in his criminal case, which was used in early June to bring him back from his wrongful removal to El Salvador. Prosecutors charged him in Federal District Court in Nashville with taking part in a yearslong conspiracy to smuggle illegal immigrants across the United States as a member of the violent transnational street gang MS-13. But in his order releasing Mr. Abrego Garcia, Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr., who is overseeing the criminal case, cast serious doubts on what he described as the government's 'poor attempts to tie Abrego to MS-13.' Judge Crenshaw noted in particular that there was no evidence that Mr. Abrego Garcia had any 'markings or tattoos showing gang affiliation,' an assertion that directly undercut accusations that officials including President Trump have made. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Free Malaysia Today
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
Siti Kasim wins suit over unlawful arrest by Jawi officers
Siti Kasim was arrested during a 2016 raid at a transgender beauty pageant event. KUALA LUMPUR : The High Court here has ruled that the federal territories Islamic religious department (Jawi) and its officers unlawfully arrested and detained lawyer-activist Siti Kasim during a raid on a private fundraising dinner in 2016. Judge Su Tiang Joo said the court was satisfied that Siti had proven her case on a balance of probabilities. He affirmed that Siti had been present in her capacity as an assistant advocate when she was arrested at about 10.30pm on April 3, 2016, and held without basis until her release at about 2.30am the following day. Su said the religious officers involved had neither the lawful grounds to arrest Siti nor the authority to act on offences under the Penal Code. He awarded Siti RM160,000 in general and aggravated damages, along with RM100,000 in legal costs. Siti filed the civil suit against Jawi and the government in September 2019, claiming compensation for wrongful arrest and illegal detention. She contended that she suffered 'loss of freedom' for four hours after she was detained by the Jawi officers, as well as nervous shock, insult and mental anguish. She said she was only carrying out her duty as a lawyer during the raid, and insisted that she had not obstructed the officers from carrying out their duties. Siti was acquitted by the magistrates' court here on Aug 21, 2020, of a charge under Section 186 of the Penal Code for obstructing Jawi officer Nor Jihan Saleh during the raid, which took place at a transgender beauty pageant event. Lawyer A Saha Deva represented Siti, while senior federal counsel Nur Irmawatie Daud appeared for the defendants.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Yahoo
Former Nye County captain avoids prison sentence after CEO's unlawful arrest
LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — A former Nye County Sheriff's Office captain, who pleaded guilty to the wrongful arrest of a power company CEO, avoided prison time at a sentencing in federal court Tuesday, the 8 News Now Investigators have learned. Chief Judge Andrew P. Gordon sentenced David Boruchowitz, who once acted as the sheriff department's public information officer, to a three-year probation term and 180 days of curfew, according to a spokeswoman with the U.S. Department of Justice. Boruchowitz's attorney confirmed that Gordon also imposed a $35,000 fine and an additional $125 penalty. In March, Boruchowitz pleaded guilty to one count of unlawfully depriving the CEO's rights and one count of wire fraud. According to court documents, beginning in February 2019, Boruchowitz and others made 'numerous misrepresentations and omissions of material fact as part of a scheme to defraud and fraudulently deprive' former Valley Electric Association CEO Angela Evans of her job and a spot on the company's board of directors. It was alleged that Boruchowitz wanted that board position. Federal prosecutors said he had no right to arrest Evans. Police-worn body camera video posted on the Nye County Sheriff's Facebook page appears to show police handing Evans a warrant before eventually arresting her. As the office's public information officer, Boruchowitz posted press releases on Facebook about the Evans' arrest on embezzlement charges. Local authorities decided not to press charges against Evans. A federal indictment from August 2023 said Boruchowitz and others made 'numerous misrepresentations and omissions of material fact as part of a scheme to defraud and fraudulently deprive' Evans of her job and board membership. By pleading guilty, Boruchowitz avoided a perjury charge and two additional charges related to wire fraud. The courtroom at the federal courthouse in Las Vegas was packed full of people who witnessed the daylong sentencing. Gordon, the chief judge in Nevada, gave Boruchowitz some credit for accepting responsibility, which the prosecutor said in filings, Boruchowitz did not immediately do. Baruchowitz's attorney, Crane Pomerantz from the Las Vegas office of the firm Clark Hill, told the 8 News Now Investigators the following in a statement, which read in its entirety: 'Judge Gordon made some very poignant statements during sentencing today that Mr. Boruchowitz takes to heart. He appreciates the opportunity he has been given and looks forward to continuing the good work he does for the Pahrump community, especially its disabled citizens.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Yahoo
AI, Wrong Guy: Investigating the use and dangers of artificial intelligence in Jacksonville policing
A Lee County man was wrongfully arrested last year after AI facial recognition technology used by the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office got it wrong. Experts are now warning about the potential dangers of the technology. The Jacksonville Beach Police Department said 51-year-old Robert Dillon allegedly tried luring a 12-year-old child in Jacksonville Beach back in November of 2023. According to a police report, Dillon was linked to a suspect caught on surveillance video in a Jacksonville Beach McDonald's through the use of the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office's AI facial recognition technology. Jacksonville Beach PD conferred with JSO, according to the report, and the technology found a 93% match between Dillon and the suspect using that technology. The report says police then provided a photo spread of Dillon and other similar-looking individuals to two witnesses. Both identified Dillon as the suspect. However, the case would later be completely dropped. The state attorney's office told Action News Jax the arrest will be wiped from Mr. Dillon's record. 'Police are not allowed under the Constitution to arrest somebody without probable cause,' Nate Freed-Wessler with the American Civil Liberties Union would later tell Action News Jax. 'And this technology expressly cannot provide probable cause, it is so glitchy, it's so unreliable. At best, it has to be viewed as an extremely unreliability lead because it often, often gets it wrong.' Freed-Wessler is the deputy director for the ACLU's Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project. He was also part of the legal team that helped sue on behalf of Robert Williams – a Detroit man wrongfully arrested thanks to facial recognition similar to the technology used to identify Dillon. The Detroit Police department settled that case for $300,000 in damages, and implemented safeguards when using AI facial recognition in their investigations. Freed-Wessler told Action News Jax that wrongful arrests using AI facial recognition are more common than many think, especially among people of color. 'It's partly because of photo quality problems in low light situations, when the cameras are trying to identify darker skin people,' Freed-Wessler explained. 'In fact, in almost all of the wrongful arrest cases around the country that we know of, it's been black people who have been incorrectly, wrongfully picked up by police.' Action News Jax sat down with Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters to discuss the use of AI facial recognition technology in Jacksonville Sheriff's Office investigations. Sheriff Waters reassured the technology is simply a small piece of the investigative puzzle. 'If you came to me with a facial recognition hit and that was your probable cause, I would probably kick you out of my office because that's not how it works,' Sheriff Waters explained. 'And I can't speak to [the Jacksonville Beach Police Department's] investigation. I can tell you this, there better be a lot more that goes along with that to help make sure that we have the proper individual too.' [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] However, Freed-Wessler believes this procedure wasn't properly followed by Jacksonville Beach police in their investigation, adding that photo spreads based on a facial recognition match aren't sufficient evidence to make an arrest. 'When this technology gets it wrong, it's going to get it wrong with a face of somebody who looks similar to the suspect,' Freed-Wessler explained. 'It's no surprise that when police juice a lineup procedure with a doppelganger, with a lookalike, a witness is going to choose an innocent person.' Now, the Jacksonville Beach Police Department tells Action News Jax the investigation is still open after Dillon was cleared of any wrongdoing, adding in part: 'We will not be commenting on this matter beyond stating that all warrant requests are submitted to the state attorney's office. It is solely their decision whether or not to move forward with issuing a warrant.' Action News Jax reached out to the state attorney's office as well. A spokesman only confirmed Dillon was cleared of any wrongdoing. Now, Dillon's lawyer tells Action News Jax that he is seeking compensation, although he and Dillon declined interview requests. Meanwhile Courtney Barclay, an AI policy expert at Jacksonville University, said law enforcement agencies across the nation will continue to use AI and facial recognition. Barclay outlined the need to always second-guess. 'Every industry is just now starting to scratch the surface of the potential of AI, how it can impact our society. Law enforcement is no exception,' Barclay said. 'And so, again, we just want to be cognizant of the risks.' >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
