Mom Kicked Out of Rockettes at Radio City Due to Facial Recognition

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When Kelly Conlon arrived at Radio City Music Hall to watch the Rockettes’ “Christmas Spectacular,” she never expected to be turned away. But that’s exactly what happened, with the mother's story adding to burgeoning concerns about the use of facial recognition technology.

The weekend after Thanksgiving, Conlon and her daughter headed into New York City on a Girl Scout trip to see the show. While everyone else in their party made it through security, Conlon was immediately stopped.

According to her recollection, it all happened very quickly upon her going through the metal detector. “I heard over an intercom or loudspeaker,” she told NBC New York. “I heard them say woman with long dark hair and a grey scarf.”

She said security guards told her she was picked up by the venue’s “recognition,” referring to facial recognition software. She was removed from the venue while her daughter and the rest of the troop and parents went inside.

It was later revealed that the reason Conlon was not allowed into the performance was because she works as an attorney for a New Jersey-based law firm that is involved in personal injury litigation against MSG Entertainment, which owns Radio City. Conlon says she is not personally involved in any cases against the company.

The company says banning Conlon is in line with its guidelines. “MSG instituted a straightforward policy that precludes attorneys pursuing active litigation against the Company from attending events at our venues until that litigation has been resolved,” an MSG Entertainment spokesperson said in a statement. “While we understand this policy is disappointing to some, we cannot ignore the fact that litigation creates an inherently adverse environment. All impacted attorneys were notified of the policy, including Davis, Saperstein and Salomon, which was notified twice.”

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