A former assistant principal at Pikesville High named in a fake, racist recording is suing a former staff member who generated the false audio, as well as Baltimore County Public Schools for negligence.
Kathryn Albert, who was an administrator when the deepfake recording went viral in 2024, argues in her June 1 lawsuit that her reputation was tarnished when Pikesville’s ex-athletic director, Dazhon Darien, used artificial intelligence to mimic the school’s principal in a “highly offensive” recording.
Darien, 34, was convicted of a misdemeanor and sentenced to four months last year but has remained in custody as the defendant in a federal child pornography and exploitation case.
Both he and the school system were defendants in a now-settled lawsuit filed by Pikesville’s former principal, Eric Eiswert, who is now principal of Sparrows Point Middle School.
Darien did not have an attorney listed as representing him in either lawsuit. Last year, he told a Baltimore County judge that he should have handled his frustrations at work differently and that he was sorry for the impact his AI recording had on the high school’s community.
“It was never my intention to hurt any of them,” he said.
Neither Albert’s lawyer, Kent Greenberg, nor Baltimore County Public Schools immediately responded to requests for comment on Thursday.
Darien’s case garnered international news attention and brought waves of accusations and assertions that Eiswert had been racist against Black and Jewish students. It also fueled efforts by state lawmakers to include AI “deepfakes” and forgeries into Maryland’s criminal code.
According to Albert’s complaint, the false audio, which was produced using a secret recording of Eiswert’s real voice, depicts a conversation between her and the principal.
As a result, Albert said she faced online threats and a “malicious assault on her character” — wrecking her reputation “in a near-instant.”
Albert said the school system advised her not to park in the same spot at work for her own safety and to mix up the routes she takes to and from the job.
According to the complaint, Albert’s family was so fearful for their well-being that they installed security cameras and motion-sensor lights around their home. She said her husband kept a baseball bat by their bed, as well.
Professionally, although the AI recording was outed, Albert sought to remove herself from “the public eye” and became an online learning supervisor, her lawyer wrote.
Albert’s lawsuit accuses Baltimore County Public Schools of negligence in its hiring and supervision of Darien, who reportedly embellished his background when applying for the six-figure position.
It also accuses Darien of defamation and invading her privacy.
Albert’s complaint requests damages in excess of $75,000. State law requires civil complaints to list a specific dollar amount for smaller damage amounts.
How much money was awarded in Eiswert’s settlement with the school system was not publicly disclosed.
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