In an unprecedented legal move, a 61-year-old Texas resident has filed a $10 million lawsuit against prominent retailers Sunglass Hut and Macy’s, along with their parent companies. This action follows a distressing ordeal where the plaintiff, Harvey Eugene Murphy Jr., was mistakenly identified and subsequently suffered severe consequences, including false imprisonment and a horrific assault while in custody.
Murphy’s Misidentification
Murphy’s ordeal began with a facial recognition system failure. He was erroneously connected to an armed robbery in Houston, dating back to January 2022, despite living in California at the time. The lawsuit centers on the assertion that the facial recognition technology employed by the retailers is inherently flawed, leading to this grave misidentification.
The Houston Chronicle reports that Murphy’s nightmare unfolded when he was arrested at a DMV office. Despite presenting a solid alibi that police later verified, Murphy faced incarceration. During his time in the Harris County jail, he was wrongly identified as the suspect and endured a violent sexual assault.