Ex-security officer says Peppermill Reno facial recognition regularly misidentified patrons

Aaron Gamino, who previously worked as a security officer at the Peppermill Reno casino resort, has alleged in a sworn declaration that the property's facial recognition system does not work as intended. His statement comes in the legal dispute that followed the wrongful arrest of a customer.

In 2023, Jason Killinger visited the casino and was arrested even though he had done nothing wrong. The system had matched him to another patron who had previously been banned from the property. Killinger says he showed legal documents proving who he was, but the arrest went ahead.

Killinger later filed civil rights lawsuits against the casino, the employee who arrested him and the City of Reno. Peppermill Reno settled its case with him, while the remaining case has drawn the attention of many legal experts. His challenge has recently been backed by the American Civil Liberties Union and the Innocence Project.

Gamino worked at the resort between 2024 and 2026 and was not present when Killinger was arrested. In his declaration, he said the system regularly misidentified patrons and that Killinger was not the only person affected. According to Gamino, as many as 12 false matches could occur within a single shift.

He also said security staff received almost no training on the technology. Rather than treating a match as a lead to investigate, management reportedly told officers to detain suspected trespassers even when those people could produce valid identification. Gamino said his supervisor reacted harshly toward colleagues who questioned this approach, and he alleged that the casino did not correct its database even after errors were found.

These claims contradict earlier statements by the defendants, who maintained that the facial recognition system did not make incorrect identifications. Civil liberties advocates involved in the case argue that an automated facial recognition match alone should not be grounds for an arrest.