The lawsuit alleges private information was shown online without consent.
Deputy Francisco Castillo and the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office are listed as defendants in a privacy violation lawsuit. Torry Osby is the driver who filed suit after he said he was stopped by Castillo on March 2, 2021.
According to the lawsuit, “the traffic encounter ended with Mr. Osby receiving a verbal warning and no citation.”
However, it was not until later that Osby was contacted by a stranger and made aware that the encounter was streamed live on Castillo’s TikTok account.
“He pulled him over, not because of a traffic violation, but because he wanted to live stream this on to TikTok to get followers or views and likes,” James Roberts said. Roberts is a civil rights attorney and represents Osby.
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A screenshot in the lawsuit shows Castillo’s TikTok account under username @cycocisco in March 2021. His account information lists nearly 14,000 followers and below are thumbnails of his videos dressed in his Dallas County Sheriff’s uniform.
“When looking at his TikTok, I mean, there are numerous other videos where he's on duty, and those videos had the most views of any of the videos on his TikTok,” Roberts said.
During the traffic stop, Osby provided his driver’s license.
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“When he asks for his ID, his driver's license, he hands that to the officer, and the officer then shows on camera to everyone following,” Roberts said. “Everyone watching our client's identifying information, his name, his address, his date of birth, his driver's license number, height, weight, eye color, hair color, everything that you would need to impersonate someone or to know where someone lives and to get their information.”
A screenshot in the lawsuit allegedly shows the moment Castillo flashed Osby’s driver’s license on camera.
“A person who was watching then reached out to our client using the information that was broadcast on the live stream,” Roberts said.
That person told Osby 109 people were tuned in.
“When you're doing it for personal gain, I think at that point you're abusing the privileges and the power you have as a government official,” Roberts said.
According to the lawsuit, “Mr. Osby filed a complaint against defendant Castillo with the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office and an Internal Affairs investigation ensued.”
The lawsuit shows an email Osby received from the sheriff’s office stating Castillo was suspended for violating the agency's social media policy.
Osby and his attorney want to know if the cell phone was government-issued and if a body camera video of the encounter is available.
“I'm wondering if he had his cell phone on his chest if he had another type of camera. I'd also like to know if that cell phone camera was government-issued,” Roberts said. “We'll be able to hear what he was saying over his live stream because I don't know that we're going to be able to obtain the live stream video that happened over TikTok. So, the body camera video will show what he was saying on that.”
Osby claims the live stream has caused emotional distress, requiring therapy, and added security at home. Osby has requested a jury trial and monetary compensation.
NBC 5 reached out to Castillo via his TikTok account however, the request was deleted by the user.
Dallas County Sheriff’s Office and the Dallas County Sheriff’s Association were also contacted however, as of Wednesday afternoon, requests have gone unanswered.
