The New York attorney-general is probing allegations that the house owners of Manhattan’s Madison Sq. Backyard area used facial recognition expertise to bar legal professionals concerned in litigation in opposition to the leisure firm from attending occasions.
In a letter despatched on Tuesday to MSG Leisure, which additionally owns Radio Metropolis Music Corridor, the workplace of Letitia James mentioned it had reviewed experiences suggesting that hundreds of legal professionals throughout 90 companies had been banned from the corporate’s websites, violating civil rights regulation.
“MSG Leisure can’t combat their authorized battles in their very own arenas,” mentioned James, whose workplace additionally raised issues that the expertise might discriminate in opposition to minorities. “Anybody with a ticket to an occasion shouldn’t be involved that they might be wrongfully denied entry primarily based on their look, and we’re urging MSG Leisure to reverse this coverage.”
MSG Leisure didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Final 12 months, New York lawyer Larry Hutcher sued MSG in state courtroom, alleging that the corporate had revoked his basketball season ticket and banned him from a number of venues after he started representing ticket resellers in a separate case in opposition to the enterprise.
A number of different attorneys concerned in litigation in opposition to MSG instructed a Delaware courtroom in November that they too had obtained letters barring them from MSG venues — a coverage the decide in that case known as “the stupidest factor I’ve ever learn”.
Gregory Varallo, a lawyer in that case, instructed the courtroom that MSG “used facial recognition software program to come back in and scrape all the net pages of all of the companies concerned after which used that facial recognition software program on the Backyard and different venues”.
He went on to mock “the concept I’ve been discovered — that my evil plan to go to the Garden and discuss to the pretzel vendor about litigation technique has been uncovered”, in response to a transcript of the proceedings.
The transfer by the New York attorney-general got here days after state senators launched a invoice designed to shut a authorized loophole and prohibit “wrongful refusal of entry” at sporting occasions.
“MSG’s use of facial recognition expertise . . . is an unacceptable invasion of the privateness of all their patrons, and a blatant try and intimidate and bully those that may need to pursue their day in courtroom in opposition to the corporate,” state senator Liz Krueger mentioned on Monday.
“It’s completely time for town and the state to rethink any and all permits, licenses and advantages supplied to MSG within the face of their continued malfeasance.”
Senators additionally claimed MSG rescinded an area meeting member’s invitation to an MSG occasion after he attended a press convention over their use of facial recognition.
