Using Facial Recognition to Kick Lawyer Out of Rockettes Performance is Justified by MSG

Kelly Conlon had no idea that after she entered Radio City Music Hall in New York to watch the Rockettes perform in their Christmas Spectacular show, she would be expelled from the performance with her daughter's Girl Scout group. Because Conlon is a New Jersey lawyer, security detained her, according to NBC New York. It appears that Madison Square Garden Entertainment has started employing facial recognition software to identify any patrons at any of its venues, including Radio City Music Hall, who is associated with any law practice that is actively engaging in a lawsuit against MSG Entertainment. Conlon has never worked as an attorney in New York, and he has never taken part in any legal action against MSG Entertainment. She is instead guilty by association since she works for Davis, Saperstein, and Solomon, a law firm that has been embroiled in litigation for years against a restaurant that, according to NBC, is "now under the aegis of MSG Entertainment." Conlon claimed that she learned of this purported conflict of interest when security personnel stopped her in the Radio City Music Hall foyer as she was leaving the metal detector. Conlon heard a warning over the speakers about a woman wearing a gray scarf, and security confirmed it was indeed her by saying, "Our recognition picked you up." [caption id="attachment_74642" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Image: gettyimages[/caption] Conlon assured security that he was not an attorney working on any lawsuits against MSG, "Her exit was escorted. Ars was unable to quickly contact MSG for comment, but in a statement, MSG claimed that her firm had been "notified twice" of MSG's policy and that any attorney working for her firm would have had the same outcome. [Update: Ars asked MSG to comment further, but they declined.] "MSG implemented a clear policy that prohibits lawyers representing the Company in litigation from attending events at our venues until that lawsuit is concluded," according to the statement given to NBC. "While we recognize that some people will find this decision disappointing, we cannot deny the fact that litigation necessarily creates a hostile environment." According to a New York Times article, MSG started utilizing facial recognition software in 2018 to "bolster security." MSG venues put up signs to let people know they're using technology. Conlon declined to comment when asked by Ars, but she told NBC that she did not pose a threat at the Rockettes performance and stated, "I was just a parent taking my daughter to see a Christmas show." She called her encounter "mortifying" and "embarrassing." [caption id="attachment_74641" align="aligncenter" width="1200"] Image: gettyimages[/caption] Conlon waited outside rather than accompanying her daughter to the festive entertainment. According to NBC, several people who have been banned have sued MSG over the strategy, believing it to be MSG's means of retaliating against legal teams that pursue the entertainment conglomerate. The single exception to the rules has so far been fought for and won in court by one company, but MSG is still fighting that ruling.