Florissant Settles Nude-Photo Abuse Suit for $4 Million After Officer Searched 20 Women's Phones
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 1
Florissant Settles Nude-Photo Abuse Suit for $4 Million After Officer Searched 20 Women's Phones
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 1
Summary
$4 million will be paid to women whose nude images were taken from their phones by former Florissant officer Julian Alcala, in a settlement covering the city's full insurance limits.
20 women were targeted between February and May 2024 after Alcala seized phones during traffic stops, claimed he was checking insurance or registration, then searched for intimate images and photographed them with his own phone.
One victim spotted that a video had been forwarded from her phone, triggering an FBI investigation; Alcala resigned after the department was notified.
2 years in prison was imposed on Alcala in March after he pleaded guilty in December to 20 counts of deprivation of rights, while the defendants denied liability and said the deal was reached to end the case.
The case emerged alongside another Missouri cellphone-search scandal: former state trooper David McKnight received 21 months in April after pleading guilty to nine similar civil-rights counts.