The mayor of Reno, Nevada, has filed a lawsuit against a private investigator and his company, alleging that he installed a tracking device on her car without her knowledge or consent, leaving her in constant fear.
The complaint alleges that McNeely, at the request of an “unidentified third party,” trespassed upon Schieve’s private property and “surreptitiously installed a sophisticated GPS tracking device on the personal vehicle of Schieve, monitoring her every movement.”
According to the complaint, the tracking device received minute-by-minute updates of her location, which lawyers for Schieve say was allegedly used to photograph and surveil Schieve, in violation of her privacy.
This, her lawyers say, caused her significant fear and distress.
“By tracking her, Defendants exposed Schieve to an unjustified and unwarranted risk of harassment, stalking, and bodily harm,” the lawsuit states.
Lawyers for Schieve, who was re-elected to a third term as Reno’s mayor last month, said she discovered the device by chance after a mechanic noticed it while he was working on her car.
“Upon information and belief, Defendants not only installed GPS tracking devices on Schieve’s vehicle but also installed similar tracking devices on the vehicles of multiple other prominent community members,” the lawsuit states, without providing further evidence.
The lawsuit is seeking at least $15,000 in damages.
“Defendants intended to cause harm to Plaintiff and knew or recklessly disregarded the reasonable likelihood that the dissemination of Plaintiff’s location could lead to death, bodily injury, harassment, stalking, financial loss, or a substantial life disruption,” the lawsuit states.
‘I Honestly Felt Sick to My Stomach’
Schieve, via her mechanic, discovered the device on her vehicle two weeks before the latest election was held, according to The Nevada Independent.She then took the device to local police, who identified McNeely as the individual who had purchased the tracker.
“I was shocked. I honestly felt sick to my stomach,” Schieve, who filed the lawsuit as a private citizen, told the publication. “I would never want this to happen to a family member, a young girl. It’s an invasion of privacy. It’s stalking. It’s just super alarming.”
In a statement released after the complaint was filed on Thursday, lead attorney Adam Hosmer-Henner with McDonald Carano told the publication that his office would continue to aggressively search for the individual or individuals who hired the private investigator.
He added that the lawsuit is based on what he called an “outrageous” invasion of privacy.
“We will aggressively seek to determine who hired the private investigators and will be amending our complaint to assert claims against them as well,” Hosmer-Henner said. “Further, we have been informed that the tracking and surveillance were not limited to Ms. Schieve and so potentially affected community members should inspect their vehicles and property for similar devices.”
The Epoch Times has contacted David McNeely and 5 Alpha Industries for comment.
That lawsuit alleges that the device has “become the weapon of choice of stalkers and abusers” and that the AirTags have been linked to a number of murders this year of men and women in Ohio and Indianapolis.
Plaintiffs argue that whole Apple has “built safeguards” into the devices, they are “woefully inadequate, and do little, if anything, to promptly warn individuals if they are being tracked.”
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