According to a CNN report, Denver Police They were trying to recover a stolen truck filled with weapons, ammunition and cash. For this purpose, the police used Apple’s Find My technology on another device iPhone locate the vehicle. However, the police chose the wrong house in a fairly huge area to break in and catch the thieves.
Because of this failed raid, a 78-year-old man Ruby Johnson filed a lawsuit against the police. As compensation, the city will pay Johnson a $3.76 million bounty.
Additionally, the charged officers — Detective Gary Staab and Sgt. Gregory Buschy – were also sued individually. Denver police had already cleared both men of wrongdoing, but a grand jury disagreed.
What role did Apple’s Find My app play?
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) brought the case on Johnson’s behalf. The lawsuit mentions that the raid was conducted based on “an alleged location signal from the Find My app on an iPhone that the officers did not understand and were not trained to exploit.”
According to the complaint, police relied on a “Find My” ping from an iPhone 11 that was likely still in the stolen truck. However, the identified area included parts of six other properties on parts of four city blocks.
Johnson’s lawyer said in a statement Tim Macdonald she said: “We are concerned about the lack of training or policy changes and hope that the amount of punitive damages awarded will send a forceful message that the police must take the constitutional rights of their residents seriously.”
The ACLU and the jury concluded that the two police officers who ordered the raid had no reason to target Johnson’s home.
In addition, the officers must pay nearly $1.25 million each in punitive and compensatory damages. The Denver District Court clerk noted that the city has not yet appealed the ruling.
