{ "meta": { "exportedAt": "2026-09-22T15:25:22.918Z", "formatVersion": 2, "selection": { "q": "federal", "system": "", "harm": "", "context": "", "country": "", "role": "", "relation": "", "evidence": "", "year": "2024", "response": "", "severity": "", "verification": "", "view": "incidents", "sort": "added" }, "totalIncidents": 5, "coverage": { "cases": 5, "countries": 1, "languages": 1, "unknownLocation": 1, "locationPending": 0, "unknownLanguage": 2, "unknownDate": 0, "lawsuits": 4, "regulatory": 0, "minors": 2, "coreRelations": 1, "contextualRelations": 2, "mixedRelations": 0, "unknownRelations": 2, "relationPending": 2, "relationUnknown": 0 }, "countingNote": "Distinct public cases in this selection. People counts apply within individual cases only; cross-case person overlap has not been resolved. No population incidence estimate.", "affectedCountNote": "Interpret person counts with affectedCountStatus and the reported effects. Unquantified zeros are placeholders, not a measured zero.", "source": "NOPE Incident Tracker", "url": "https://nope.net/incidents", "license": "CC BY 4.0" }, "incidents": [ { "id": "2026-strahler-ohio-ai-deepfake-cyberstalking-take-it-down-act", "caseFacts": { "claims": [ { "id": "c1", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'sentenced last week in U.S. District Court to 180 months in prison'; 'pleaded guilty in April to cyberstalking, producing obscene visual representations of child sexual abuse and publication of digital forgeries'; 'the first in the Nation under the Take It Down Act'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'sentenced Sept. 8 in U.S. District Court in Columbus to 15 years in prison'; 'first in the nation to be convicted under a 2025 federal law'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" }, { "locator": "'Chief U.S. District Court Judge Sarah D. Morrison handed down the 180-month sentence to 37-year-old James Strahler II on Tuesday'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s4" } ], "assertion": "On 8 September 2026 James Strahler II was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Columbus to 180 months (15 years) after pleading guilty in April 2026 to cyberstalking, producing obscene visual representations of child sexual abuse and publication of digital forgeries; the U.S. Attorney described it as the first conviction under the Take It Down Act.", "causal_attribution": "Court outcome reported by the prosecuting office and two independent local newsrooms." }, { "id": "c2", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'used to harass at least six women in central Ohio between December 2024 and June 2025'; 'nude images of the victims that were both real and AI-generated'; 'used AI to create pornographic videos depicting one of the women engaged in sexual acts with her father'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" }, { "locator": "'harass at least six adult female victims from December 2024 to June 2025'; 'generated pornographic videos using AI that depicted an adult victim in sexual acts with her father and sent those videos to the victim's co-workers'; 'threatened victims' mothers, demanding nude photos'; 'voicemails that included threats of rape'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s4" }, { "locator": "'sent harassing messages to at least six women'; 'distributed those videos to the victim's coworkers or family members'; 'threaten rape'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s3" } ], "assertion": "Between December 2024 and June 2025 Strahler harassed at least six adult women in central Ohio with messages containing real and AI-generated nude images of them, threatened rape, referred to their addresses, threatened their mothers, and in one case sent AI-generated pornographic videos depicting a victim with her father to her co-workers.", "causal_attribution": "Prosecutors' account of the offending, reported by three local newsrooms; the defendant pleaded guilty." }, { "id": "c3", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'posted online AI-generated images of the faces of boys from his community that he would morph onto the bodies of other children or adults'; 'more than 700 images'; '2,400 images and videos on his cell phone were flagged'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" }, { "locator": "'using the faces of minor boys from his community and morphing them onto the bodies of other children or adults'; 'more than 700 images'; '2,400 more flagged images and videos'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s4" } ], "assertion": "Strahler also posted AI-generated sexual images of minor boys from his community, morphing their faces onto other bodies; more than 700 images were posted to a child sexual abuse website and about 2,400 further explicit files were found on his phone.", "causal_attribution": "Prosecutors' account; part of the guilty plea to producing obscene visual representations of child sexual abuse." } ], "effects": [ { "label": "at least six women harassed with real and AI-generated nude images and rape threats; AI videos of one sent to her co-workers; boys depicted in AI abuse imagery", "claim_id": "c2", "direction": "negative" } ], "sources": [ { "id": "s1", "url": "https://highlandcountypress.com/headlines/columbus-man-sentenced-15-years-prison-cyberstalking-exes-creating-ai-generated-obscene", "kind": "official_statement_republished", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-18. Verbatim republication (16 Sep 2026) of the U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Ohio press release; the justice.gov original (usao-sdoh/pr/columbus-man-sentenced-15-years-prison-cyberstalking-exes-creating-ai-generated) returns only a 1.5 kB shell to this host.", "independence_group": "usao-sdoh" }, { "id": "s2", "url": "https://www.dispatch.com/story/news/courts/2026/09/08/james-strahler-sentenced-to-15-years-in-prison-for-ai-generated-porn/91664055007/", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-18 (Columbus Dispatch, Shahid Meighan, 8 Sep 2026; served from the eu.dispatch.com mirror). Court reporting drawing on the USAO and court records.", "independence_group": "dispatch" }, { "id": "s3", "url": "https://www.10tv.com/article/news/crime/columbus-man-15-years-cyberstalking-creating-ai-generated-obscene-material/530-f3a9a6c2-cf42-4011-a757-e65a624f8b9f", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-18 via the MSN content API copy (WBNS 10TV, 8 Sep 2026). Adds the Hilliard Police investigative history from court records.", "independence_group": "10tv" }, { "id": "s4", "url": "https://abc6onyourside.com/news/local/man-sentenced-to-15-years-in-federal-prison-for-cyberstalking-creating-ai-deepfakes-us-district-court-judge-sarah-d-morrison-james-strahler-ii-take-it-down-act-nonconsensual-project-safe-childhood", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-18 via the MSN content API copy (WSYX ABC6, 8 Sep 2026). Names the sentencing judge and the threats to victims' mothers.", "independence_group": "abc6" } ], "version": 1, "ai_roles": [ "others_use" ], "contexts": [ "relationships", "privacy", "justice" ], "unknowns": [ "The exact number of adult victims beyond 'at least six' and the number of boys depicted are not stated.", "The AI tools used are not named in any inspected source.", "Whether restitution or protective orders were imposed is not reported.", "The status of the earlier local (state) charge is not reported." ], "geography": { "basis": "Event: central Ohio (Columbus/Upper Arlington, Hilliard, Delaware County) per the USAO release and Dispatch. Victims are described as women in central Ohio. Court: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Columbus.", "court_countries": [ "US" ], "event_countries": [ "US" ], "affected_person_countries": [ "US" ] }, "publication": { "basis": "Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as a harmful-artifact and impersonation case: identified adult women and local boys were depicted in AI-generated sexual imagery used for harassment and threats, a federal court sentenced the perpetrator, and four sources (the prosecuting office's release and three independent local newsrooms) were read. Victims are unnamed; the perpetrator is named in the court record and press.", "reviewed_on": "2026-09-18" }, "ai_involvement": { "basis": "The defendant pleaded guilty to publication of digital forgeries and producing obscene visual representations of child sexual abuse; prosecutors and the court record describe AI-generated nude images and AI-made videos of victims and AI-morphed images of boys. The AI tools depicted the affected people; they did not communicate with them.", "status": "supported" }, "person_relations": [ "depicted_or_impersonated" ] }, "name": "Columbus, Ohio: a man was sentenced to 15 years for cyberstalking at least six women with real and AI-generated sexual images and rape threats, the first conviction under the Take It Down Act", "summary": "Between December 2024 and June 2025 James Strahler II, then 37, of Columbus (Upper Arlington), Ohio, harassed at least six women in central Ohio by phone, voicemail, text and web posts, sending them nude images that were both real and AI-generated, threatening rape, referring to their home addresses and demanding nude photos from their mothers. In one case he used AI to make pornographic videos depicting a victim with her father and sent them to her co-workers. He also posted AI-generated sexual images of boys from his community, morphing their faces onto other bodies. Prosecutors said he had installed more than 24 AI platforms and more than 100 web-based AI models on his phone. He pleaded guilty in April 2026 to cyberstalking, producing obscene visual representations of child sexual abuse and publication of digital forgeries, and on 8 September 2026 Chief U.S. District Judge Sarah D. Morrison sentenced him to 180 months in prison. The U.S. Attorney called it the first conviction in the nation under the 2025 Take It Down Act.", "incidentDate": "2024-12-01", "incidentEndDate": "2025-06-30", "incidentKind": "bounded_series", "incidentDatePrecision": "month", "exposurePattern": "repeated_interactions", "reportedDate": "2026-09-08", "aiSystem": "Generative AI image and video tools (not named; prosecutors said more than 24 AI platforms and over 100 web-based AI models were installed on the defendant's phone)", "severity": "high", "verificationStatus": "credible", "harmCategories": [], "harmOutcomes": [ "exploitation_or_abuse", "psychological_distress", "reputational_harm" ], "harmOutcomeSummary": "At least six women were sexually harassed and threatened with rape using real and AI-generated nude images of themselves, with AI videos of one victim sent to her co-workers; victims' mothers were threatened, and boys from the defendant's community were depicted in AI-generated sexual abuse imagery posted online. The perpetrator received 15 years in federal prison.", "frameworkFacets": [], "causationStatus": "established", "participantUsersAffectedMin": 0, "otherPeopleHarmedMin": 6, "affectedCountStatus": "partial", "affectedCountEvidence": "Prosecutors said Strahler harassed 'at least six' adult women (Dispatch, 10TV, ABC6). Their mothers, who were threatened, and the minor boys whose faces were used in AI-generated abuse imagery are additional harmed people without a stated count. Six counted plus unquantified others: partial.", "victimAgeRange": "adult", "jurisdiction": "US", "platformType": "other", "outcomeType": "criminal_charges", "outcomeStatus": "resolved", "primarySourceUrl": "https://highlandcountypress.com/headlines/columbus-man-sentenced-15-years-prison-cyberstalking-exes-creating-ai-generated-obscene", "primarySourceLabel": "U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of Ohio press release (republished by the Highland County Press, 16 Sep 2026): Columbus man sentenced to 15 years for cyberstalking exes and creating AI-generated obscene material of adults and children", "firstPublishedAt": "2026-09-18T03:25:07.926173+00:00", "scopeVersion": "facts-v3", "tags": [ "deepfake", "ai-generated-imagery", "ncii", "cyberstalking", "take-it-down-act", "sextortion", "united-states", "ohio", "criminal-conviction", "depicted" ] }, { "id": "2026-dillon-faces-wrongful-arrest-florida", "caseFacts": { "claims": [ { "id": "c1", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'took pictures of the screen with his cell phone… low resolution… partially shadowed and off-axis'; '93 percent confidence'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "Warrant based on the FR hit + 'a statement from a restaurant employee who picked his photo out of a lineup'; 'police called Dillon in 2023, he denied involvement citing skin-cancer scars'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s3" } ], "assertion": "The warrant rested on a 93%-confidence FACES result obtained from low-resolution cell-phone photos of the restaurant's surveillance screen (partially shadowed, off-axis) plus a restaurant employee's photo-lineup identification; police had called Dillon in 2023 and he denied involvement, citing skin-cancer scars.", "causal_attribution": "The evidentiary basis is the complaint's account, carried by two chains; whether '93%' was system-generated or an investigator's characterization is unverified (the suit says the system 'spit out' his photo as a 'possible match')." }, { "id": "c2", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'arrested Aug 2024 in Fort Myers'; 'more than two months later, prosecutors dropped the charges'; 'it took an entire year… to take down his mug shot and expunge the arrest'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "Arrest bodycam 'outside his San Carlos Park home' via Gulf Coast affiliate; the Dillon interview ('I don't wish this on my worst enemy').", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" }, { "locator": "'charges… dropped… in October 2024'; 1 night jail, bonded out pledging his truck's title.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s3" } ], "assertion": "Dillon was arrested at his San Carlos Park home in August 2024, spent one night in jail and bonded out pledging his truck's title; prosecutors dropped the charges in October 2024 after work-alibi evidence; the arrest took about a year to expunge, with his mugshot lingering online.", "causal_attribution": "The custody and expungement timeline is consistent across three chains." }, { "id": "c3", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'suit in M.D. Fla. vs. city of Jacksonville Beach + officers/officials incl. Sheriff T.K. Waters'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "Suit 'includes the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, which oversees the use of the AI facial recognition technology across Florida'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" }, { "locator": "ACLU attorney Nathan Wessler interview; defendants: Jacksonville Beach PD + Jacksonville and Pinellas County sheriffs' offices.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s3" } ], "assertion": "The ACLU filed a federal lawsuit in the week of 8 June 2026 in the Middle District of Florida against the city of Jacksonville Beach, Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters and the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, seeking damages and policy safeguards.", "causal_attribution": "The suit's existence and parties are carried by three chains; the exact filing date within the week of 8 June is not pinned in the inspected sources." }, { "id": "c4", "status": "documented", "evidence": [ { "locator": "PCSO response passages ('patently false'; 'never \"matches\"'; 'rests solely with any officer').", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" } ], "assertion": "The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office responded that a training-failure claim 'is patently false', that 'facial recognition results are never \"matches\"', and that liability 'rests solely with any officer who did so'.", "causal_attribution": "The agency's position is quoted directly and preserved as contrary evidence." }, { "id": "c5", "status": "reported", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'one of at least 14 people arrested since 2019'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'one of 15 known people'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s3" } ], "assertion": "The ACLU counts Dillon as at least the 14th known person wrongfully arrested since 2019 from police reliance on facial recognition (Reason, 11 June); a later WUSF attorney interview puts the count at 15 known.", "causal_attribution": "The advocacy count is attributed to the ACLU; the two figures are recorded as stated on their dates." } ], "effects": [ { "label": "wrongful felony arrest on a 93% facial-recognition hit, with a year-long expungement fight", "claim_id": "c2", "direction": "negative" } ], "sources": [ { "id": "s1", "url": "https://reason.com/2026/06/11/aclu-sues-after-facial-recognition-falsely-identifies-florida-man-as-a-child-abductor/", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-15 (11 Jun 2026, Joe Lancaster).", "independence_group": "reason" }, { "id": "s2", "url": "https://abcnews.com/GMA/News/man-sues-law-enforcement-alleging-ai-facial-recognition/story?id=133810835", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-15 (12 Jun 2026, Hipos & Yu).", "independence_group": "abc-news" }, { "id": "s3", "url": "https://www.wusf.org/courts-law/2026-06-18/ai-facial-recognition-tool-led-to-florida-man-wrongful-arrest-lawsuit", "kind": "news_report", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-15 (18 Jun 2026, Lyden/Peddie).", "independence_group": "wusf" } ], "version": 1, "ai_roles": [ "institutional_use" ], "contexts": [ "justice" ], "unknowns": [ "The exact filing date within the week of 8 June 2026 and the docket number are not pinned in the inspected sources.", "Whether the '93%' figure was system-generated or an investigator's characterization is unverified.", "The lineup procedure's details (who administered it and how) are only partly reported.", "The expungement's completion date is given only as 'about a year' after the arrest.", "The actual perpetrator of the 2023 luring attempt is not reported as identified." ], "geography": { "basis": "Event: the warrant (Jacksonville Beach) and the arrest (San Carlos Park / Fort Myers), Florida. Affected person: Dillon, Florida. Court: the felony charge (dropped) and the federal suit in the Middle District of Florida.", "court_countries": [ "US" ], "event_countries": [ "US" ], "affected_person_countries": [ "US" ] }, "publication": { "basis": "Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as an institutional automated-decision case (made_decision_about / made_claim_about): a facial-recognition hit treated as warrant-grade identification, documented by three independent chains including the ACLU's own attorney and the vendor agency's response. Dillon spoke publicly; the PCSO denial is preserved as contrary evidence.", "reviewed_on": "2026-09-15" }, "ai_involvement": { "basis": "The warrant rested on the FACES 93%-confidence result plus a lineup identification, per the complaint as carried by Reason and WUSF; the vendor (Pinellas County Sheriff's Office FACES) is confirmed by WUSF, and the PCSO's own response acknowledges its technology's role while rejecting liability.", "status": "supported" }, "person_relations": [ "made_decision_about", "made_claim_about" ] }, "name": "Florida: 93% facial-recognition hit led to Robert Dillon's arrest as an attempted child abductor; charges dropped, ACLU suit filed", "summary": "In August 2024, Robert Dillon, a 52-year-old self-employed commercial crabber from the Fort Myers area, was arrested at his San Carlos Park home on a third-degree felony warrant for the attempted luring of a child at a Jacksonville Beach McDonald's in November 2023 — a crime he had no part in. The warrant rested on a 93%-confidence result from FACES, the Face Analysis Comparison and Examination System maintained by the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, run against low-resolution cell-phone photos of a surveillance screen, plus a restaurant employee's photo-lineup identification. Dillon spent a night in jail and bonded out against his truck's title; prosecutors dropped the charges in October 2024 after work-alibi evidence, but it took about a year to expunge the arrest and remove his mugshot. In June 2026 the ACLU filed a federal lawsuit (M.D. Fla.) against Jacksonville Beach, the Jacksonville sheriff and the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office, calling Dillon one of at least 14 known wrongful arrests from police reliance on facial recognition since 2019.", "incidentDate": "2024-08-01", "incidentEndDate": "2024-10-01", "incidentKind": "bounded_series", "incidentDatePrecision": "range", "exposurePattern": "single_interaction", "reportedDate": "2026-06-11", "aiSystem": "FACES (Face Analysis Comparison and Examination System), Pinellas County Sheriff's Office", "aiCompany": "Pinellas County Sheriff's Office (FACES centralized database)", "severity": "medium", "verificationStatus": "credible", "harmCategories": [], "harmOutcomes": [ "legal_harm", "reputational_harm", "psychological_distress" ], "harmOutcomeSummary": "Arrested at home on a child-abduction-class felony from a 93% facial-recognition hit on grainy screen photos; a night in jail, two months to clear the charge, and about a year to expunge the record and remove the mugshot.", "frameworkFacets": [], "causationStatus": "supported", "participantUsersAffectedMin": 0, "otherPeopleHarmedMin": 1, "affectedCountStatus": "exact", "affectedCountEvidence": "One documented harmed person: Dillon, the misidentified arrestee (three independent chains). The child in the underlying luring attempt is a victim of the actual perpetrator, not of the misidentification, and is not counted.", "victimAgeRange": "adult", "jurisdiction": "US", "platformType": "other", "outcomeType": "lawsuit_filed", "outcomeStatus": "ongoing", "primarySourceUrl": "https://reason.com/2026/06/11/aclu-sues-after-facial-recognition-falsely-identifies-florida-man-as-a-child-abductor/", "primarySourceLabel": "Reason (11 Jun 2026, Joe Lancaster) — complaint-based account: the screen photos, the 93% hit, the arrest, the expungement, the suit", "firstPublishedAt": "2026-09-15T10:27:54.71948+00:00", "scopeVersion": "facts-v3", "tags": [ "made-decision-about", "made-claim-about", "facial-recognition", "wrongful-arrest", "justice", "florida", "aclu" ] }, { "id": "2026-lorenzano-nunez-facial-recognition-wrongful-arrest", "caseFacts": { "claims": [ { "id": "c1", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'investigators ran Rosado's old Arizona MVD photo through facial recognition databases operated by the Arizona Department of Public Safety and the FBI. They received 250 possible matches and zeroed in on Lorenzano Nunez'; the press-release/video passage (victim's son flown in, his handcuffs used).", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'Javier Lorenzano-Nunez was arrested in October 2024'; the son's account of the arrest period.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" } ], "assertion": "Lorenzano Nunez was arrested in October 2024 for the 1998 murder of Sarah Carr after investigators ran the old suspect's MVD photo through facial recognition databases (Arizona DPS and FBI), received 250 possible matches and zeroed in on him; Phoenix police publicized the arrest with a press release and a special video featuring the victim's son.", "causal_attribution": "The arrest and the FR role are carried by both chains; the lawsuit's characterization of FR as 'the key evidence' is attributed to the filing and court records." }, { "id": "c2", "status": "corroborated", "evidence": [ { "locator": "'who spent nearly a year in jail after being arrested for a 1998 Phoenix murder'; 'All charges were quietly dismissed less than a year later after forensic evidence, including DNA and fingerprints, excluded him, records show.'", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'charges dropped against him, without prejudice, in August 2025'; MCAO: 'additional evidence that put into question his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" } ], "assertion": "He spent nearly a year in jail; charges were dismissed without prejudice in August 2025 after forensic evidence, including DNA and fingerprints, excluded him, and the county attorney said additional evidence put his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.", "causal_attribution": "The dismissal and its stated reason are official-account material carried by both chains; 'without prejudice' leaves refiling open." }, { "id": "c3", "status": "reported", "evidence": [ { "locator": "The 2007 Puerto Rico passage ('They did not act on it', per attorney Ortega) and the 2017-analysis passage ('The results excluded Lorenzano Nunez on 2 latent prints and were inconclusive on 2 others... seven years before').", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" } ], "assertion": "The lawsuit alleges Phoenix police ignored a 2007 Puerto Rico Police lead reporting a man named Gilbert Noel Sanchez Rosado in custody with the same date of birth and social security number as the suspect, and that Phoenix's own 2017 fingerprint analysis had excluded Lorenzano Nunez on two latent prints (inconclusive on two) seven years before his arrest.", "causal_attribution": "These are the lawsuit's allegations carried by one chain from court records; the county attorney declined to comment. A court has not ruled on them." }, { "id": "c4", "status": "documented", "evidence": [ { "locator": "MCAO statement passages ('pointed toward...', 'valuable investigative tool'); the notice-of-claim critique ('merely identified... as a possible lead').", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" } ], "assertion": "The Maricopa County Attorney's Office said the evidence police provided when the case was submitted 'pointed toward Javier Lorenzano-Nunez' and called facial recognition software a 'valuable investigative tool'; the notice of claim counters that facial recognition merely identified him as a possible lead.", "causal_attribution": "Both institutional positions are quoted directly; the dispute over the weight given to the FR match is the case's core and is preserved." }, { "id": "c5", "status": "reported", "evidence": [ { "locator": "The arrest-video passage (Miller flown in, his handcuffs used, interviewed for the city's special video).", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s1" }, { "locator": "'It's not the outcome we wanted, but it's not over with'; 'I wholeheartedly believe in the investigators'.", "relation": "supports", "source_id": "s2" } ], "assertion": "The victim's son, Garrett Miller, himself a police officer, was flown in for the arrest and his handcuffs were used; after the dismissal he said the outcome was heart-wrenching but that he believes in the investigators and that 'it's not over with'.", "causal_attribution": "Contrary context preserved per the charter: the family's trust in the investigation is recorded alongside the wrongful-arrest account." } ], "effects": [ { "label": "nearly a year wrongfully jailed on a facial-recognition-driven arrest, publicized by police before forensic exclusion", "claim_id": "c2", "direction": "negative" } ], "sources": [ { "id": "s1", "url": "https://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/investigations/man-falsely-arrested-with-facial-recognition-for-cold-case-murder-sues-phoenix-pd-mcao", "kind": "news_report_court_records", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-15 (datePublished 2026-07-02T14:46-07:00; 23 paragraphs).", "independence_group": "abc15" }, { "id": "s2", "url": "https://www.fox10phoenix.com/news/sarah-jane-carrs-family-vows-keep-believing-justice-after-murder-charges-dismissed", "kind": "local_tv_news", "access": "read", "language": "en", "translation_note": "Read in English on 2026-09-15 (datePublished 2026-06-01T21:20-07:00; 20 paragraphs).", "independence_group": "fox10" } ], "version": 1, "ai_roles": [ "institutional_use" ], "contexts": [ "justice" ], "unknowns": [ "The specific facial-recognition vendor/system is not named in the inspected reporting.", "Details from ABC15's earlier 'About Face' investigation (including any grand-jury or foreign-custody particulars) were not re-verified in this pass and are not claimed.", "The federal suit's filing date and docket number are not stated in the inspected sources (reported as filed by 2 July 2026).", "Whether he was held continuously from October 2024 to August 2025 ('nearly a year in jail' per ABC15) is reported without a custody breakdown.", "The 1998 murder of Sarah Carr remains unsolved; the 2007 Puerto Rico lead's current status is unknown." ], "geography": { "basis": "Event: Phoenix, Arizona (arrest, detention, dismissal). Affected person: Lorenzano Nunez. Court: Maricopa County proceedings, then the federal suit; Puerto Rico's 2007 contact was a lead, not a proceeding.", "court_countries": [ "US" ], "event_countries": [ "US" ], "affected_person_countries": [ "US" ] }, "publication": { "basis": "Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as an institutional automated-decision case (made_decision_about / made_claim_about): a facial-recognition hit treated as key arrest evidence, with nearly a year of wrongful detention, documented through court-records reporting by two independent local chains. The county attorney's defense and the victim family's trust are preserved as contrary context.", "reviewed_on": "2026-09-15" }, "ai_involvement": { "basis": "The lawsuit and court records, per ABC15, make facial recognition 'the key evidence used to arrest'; the county attorney calls it a 'valuable investigative tool' while the notice of claim says it merely identified a possible lead. The specific vendor system is not named in the inspected reporting.", "status": "supported" }, "person_relations": [ "made_decision_about", "made_claim_about" ] }, "name": "Phoenix: facial recognition match put Javier Lorenzano Nunez in jail for nearly a year for a 1998 murder; charges dismissed, federal suit filed", "summary": "Javier Lorenzano Nunez was arrested in October 2024 for the 1998 murder of Sarah Carr after investigators ran the old suspect's MVD photo through facial recognition databases, got 250 possible matches and zeroed in on him — with Phoenix police publicizing the arrest in a press release and a special video. Charges were dismissed without prejudice in August 2025 after forensic evidence, including DNA and fingerprints, excluded him. His lawsuit alleges Phoenix police knew from a 2017 fingerprint analysis that his prints did not match, and ignored a 2007 Puerto Rico lead on the original suspect with the same name, date of birth and social security number. He spent nearly a year in jail. The federal suit against the Phoenix Police Department and the Maricopa County Attorney's Office alleges gross negligence, false arrest, false imprisonment and defamation.", "incidentDate": "2024-10-01", "incidentEndDate": "2025-08-01", "incidentKind": "bounded_series", "incidentDatePrecision": "range", "exposurePattern": "single_interaction", "reportedDate": "2026-06-01", "aiSystem": "Facial recognition systems operated by the Arizona Department of Public Safety and the FBI", "aiCompany": "Arizona DPS / FBI (systems not named in inspected reporting)", "severity": "high", "verificationStatus": "credible", "harmCategories": [], "harmOutcomes": [ "legal_harm", "loss_of_autonomy", "reputational_harm", "psychological_distress" ], "harmOutcomeSummary": "Nearly a year wrongfully jailed on a facial-recognition-driven cold-case arrest that police publicized with a video and the victim's son's handcuffs, ending only when DNA and fingerprint evidence excluded him; he now alleges false arrest, false imprisonment and defamation.", "frameworkFacets": [], "causationStatus": "supported", "participantUsersAffectedMin": 0, "otherPeopleHarmedMin": 1, "affectedCountStatus": "exact", "affectedCountEvidence": "One documented harmed person: Lorenzano Nunez, the subject of the wrongful arrest (court records and two news chains). The victim's family, whose hopes were raised and dashed, is recorded in the narrative but not counted as harmed persons under the counting rules.", "victimAgeRange": "adult", "jurisdiction": "US", "platformType": "other", "outcomeType": "lawsuit_filed", "outcomeStatus": "ongoing", "primarySourceUrl": "https://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/investigations/man-falsely-arrested-with-facial-recognition-for-cold-case-murder-sues-phoenix-pd-mcao", "primarySourceLabel": "ABC15 Arizona (2 Jul 2026) — the federal suit, court records, the 2017 fingerprint exclusion and the 2007 Puerto Rico lead", "firstPublishedAt": "2026-09-15T09:35:16.968902+00:00", "scopeVersion": "facts-v3", "tags": [ "made-decision-about", "made-claim-about", "facial-recognition", "wrongful-arrest", "justice", "arizona" ] }, { "id": "2026-ad-v-character-technologies", "metadataReview": { "version": 1, "geography": { "basis": "The retained dossier locates the ongoing home or school episode in the affected person’s stated residential setting. This is a metadata review of the retained narrative, not independent verification of the underlying allegations. Affected-person countries refer to reported location or residence, not citizenship or a complete residence history.", "evidence": [ { "kind": "existing_record", "locator": "Jefferson County, Kentucky", "location": "victim_description", "supports": [ "affected_person_countries" ], "countries": [ "US" ] }, { "kind": "existing_record", "locator": "while she was at school", "location": "detailed_description", "supports": [ "event_countries" ], "countries": [ "US" ] }, { "kind": "existing_record", "locator": "U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California", "location": "outcome_details", "supports": [ "court_countries" ], "countries": [ "US" ] } ], "court_countries": [ "US" ], "event_countries": [ "US" ], "affected_person_countries": [ "US" ] }, "unresolved": [ "Source languages remain unreviewed; no source body was newly inspected for this record during this metadata pass." ], "reviewed_on": "2026-09-15", "source_reviews": [] }, "name": "A.D. v. Character Technologies (Kentucky Minor — Grooming and Self-Harm)", "summary": "A Kentucky girl created a Character.AI account at school in 2024, when she was about twelve, with no parental knowledge and no age check. Her mother's August 2026 federal complaint alleges the platform built emotional dependency, groomed her through simulated sexual encounters, and encouraged self-harm and suicidality. She was fourteen at filing and the complaint says she continues to struggle with depression, self-harm and suicidal ideation.", "incidentDate": "2024-01-01", "incidentKind": "single_event", "incidentDatePrecision": "range", "exposurePattern": "cumulative_relationship", "reportedDate": "2026-08-13", "aiSystem": "Character.AI", "aiCompany": "Character Technologies Inc.", "severity": "high", "verificationStatus": "verified", "harmCategories": [ "minor_exploitation", "romantic_escalation", "dependency_creation", "self_harm_encouragement", "suicide_validation", "psychological_manipulation" ], "harmOutcomes": [ "self_injury", "psychological_distress", "exploitation_or_abuse" ], "harmOutcomeSummary": "A Kentucky minor allegedly developed dependency, depression, self-harm and suicidal ideation after Character.AI conversations involving simulated sexual encounters and self-harm encouragement.", "frameworkFacets": [ "P1a", "P1b", "P1d", "P2b", "P2c", "P5a", "P5d" ], "pathwayDirection": "inward", "causationStatus": "alleged", "participantUsersAffectedMin": 1, "otherPeopleHarmedMin": 0, "affectedCountStatus": "exact", "affectedCountEvidence": "The complaint documents one protected minor participant and the alleged self-injury, distress, and exploitation.", "victimAgeRange": "minor", "jurisdiction": "US-KY", "platformType": "companion", "outcomeType": "lawsuit_filed", "outcomeStatus": "ongoing", "primarySourceUrl": "https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cand.476159/gov.uscourts.cand.476159.1.0.pdf", "primarySourceLabel": "Court Filing (Complaint, N.D. Cal. No. 3:26-cv-08400, 77 pp.)", "firstPublishedAt": "2026-08-25T19:09:14.721121+00:00", "scopeVersion": "participant-v2", "tags": [ "lawsuit", "minor", "grooming", "self-harm", "character-ai", "google", "us", "kentucky" ] }, { "id": "2025-nina-characterai-suicide-attempt", "metadataReview": { "version": 1, "geography": { "basis": "Geographic fields reviewed against the cited retained dossier passages. This is a metadata review, not a new source or causal review. Residence, event setting and court are recorded separately. Affected-person countries refer to reported location or residence, not citizenship or a complete residence history.", "evidence": [ { "kind": "existing_record", "locator": "from New York", "location": "victim_description", "supports": [ "affected_person_countries" ], "countries": [ "US" ] }, { "kind": "existing_record", "locator": "U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York", "location": "outcome_details", "supports": [ "court_countries" ], "countries": [ "US" ] } ], "court_countries": [ "US" ], "event_countries": [], "affected_person_countries": [ "US" ] }, "unresolved": [ "The event setting was not established in this metadata pass. A person’s home country alone was not used as its location.", "Source languages remain unreviewed; no source body was newly inspected for this record during this metadata pass." ], "reviewed_on": "2026-09-15", "source_reviews": [] }, "name": "P.J. v. Character Technologies (Nina J. — Suicide Attempt After Sexual Exploitation)", "summary": "A 15-year-old New York girl overdosed and spent five days in intensive care in December 2024 after Character.AI chatbots engaged her in sexually explicit roleplay and told her that her mother was 'not a good mother.' The collapse came the day her mother revoked her access to the platform. Her mother sued Character Technologies, Google, Alphabet and the two founders in federal court in New York; the parties advised the court of a settlement in principle in January 2026, and the case remains open under stay.", "incidentDate": "2024-12-10", "incidentKind": "single_event", "incidentDatePrecision": "day", "exposurePattern": "cumulative_relationship", "reportedDate": "2025-09-16", "aiSystem": "Character.AI", "aiCompany": "Character Technologies, Inc.", "severity": "critical", "verificationStatus": "verified", "harmCategories": [ "minor_exploitation", "romantic_escalation", "isolation_encouragement", "psychological_manipulation", "dependency_creation" ], "harmOutcomes": [ "suicide_attempt", "hospitalization", "psychological_distress", "relationship_disruption", "exploitation_or_abuse" ], "harmOutcomeSummary": "A 15-year-old participant overdosed and spent five days in intensive care after sustained sexualized Character.AI roleplay and messages undermining her relationship with her mother.", "frameworkFacets": [ "P1a", "P1b", "P1c", "P1d", "P2b", "P2c", "P2d", "P5a", "P5d" ], "pathwayDirection": "inward", "causationStatus": "alleged", "participantUsersAffectedMin": 1, "otherPeopleHarmedMin": 0, "affectedCountStatus": "exact", "affectedCountEvidence": "The reporting documents one protected minor participant's suicide attempt and intensive-care admission.", "victimAgeRange": "minor", "jurisdiction": "US-NY", "platformType": "companion", "outcomeType": "lawsuit_settled", "outcomeStatus": "pending", "primarySourceUrl": "https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.nynd.150022/gov.uscourts.nynd.150022.1.0_1.pdf", "primarySourceLabel": "Complaint — P.J. v. Character Technologies, N.D.N.Y. No. 1:25-cv-01295 (filed 16 Sep 2025, RECAP)", "firstPublishedAt": "2026-01-12T00:34:03.878916+00:00", "scopeVersion": "participant-v2", "tags": [ "character-ai", "minor", "suicide-attempt", "sexual-exploitation", "new-york", "settlement-pending", "parental-alienation", "lawsuit" ] } ] }