NEW YORK — The state attorney general is going one-on-one with Madison Square Garden boss James Dolan.
Letitia James, responding to a controversial MSG ban blocking lawyers involved in litigation against MSG from attending events at the “World’s Most Famous Arena” and other Dolan properties, asked for “justifications for the company’s policies” in a letter sent this week to Garden officials.
Dolan, executive chairman and chief executive officer of Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. and owner of the Knicks and the Rangers, fired back Thursday in a rare Q&A on Fox 5′s “Good Day New York” program, defending the use of facial recognition technology to exclude from the Garden.
“If someone is suing you, that’s confrontational,” he said. “It’s adversarial. If you’re being sued, you don’t have to welcome that person into your home.”
Dolan also defended himself against critics, including New York City lawmakers who proposed legislation allowing his perceived critics access to Garden events.
“People say, ‘You’re so sensitive, you shouldn’t defend yourself,’ ” Dolan declared during the pointed 17-minute interview. " It’s like something out of ‘The Godfather’ — like, ‘It’s only business.’ The Garden has to defend itself.”
The attorney general questioned the Garden’s use of technology to identify its targets, adding research suggested the company’s use of the software “may be plagued with biases and false positives” against people of color and women.
“MSG Entertainment cannot fight their legal battles in their own arena,” read the two-page letter sent by James. “Madison Square Garden and Radio City Music Hall are world-renowned venues and should treat all patrons who purchased tickets with fairness and respect ... We are urging MSG Entertainment to reverse this policy.”
The AG’s letter also mentioned other MSG properties including the Hulu Theater and the Beacon Theater.
Dolan said the attorney general was “just asking questions” about the hullabaloo created after details of the ban were made public this past October when attorney Larry Hutcher, a longtime Knicks season ticket holder, was barred because his law firm represented ticket resellers suing MSG.
Hutcher, who filed a lawsuit in response, was booted along with 59 colleagues at his firm.
“We’re happy to answer questions,” said Dolan, who nevertheless doubled down on his stance with a threat to halt alcohol sales for a Rangers game — urging fans to send their complaints to the State Liquor Authority. He said the SLA had threatened to take MSG’s liquor license away.
The Garden later released a statement describing the attorneys as “ambulance chasers and money grabbers whose business is motivated by self-promotion and who capitalize on the misfortune of others.”
James, in her letter, noted reports indicating approximately 90 law firms with thousands of attorneys were affected by the ban.
“To be clear, our policy does not unlawfully prohibit anyone from entering our venues and it is not our intent to dissuade attorneys from representing plaintiffs in litigation against us,” an MSG Entertainment spokesperson said Thursday. “We are merely excluding a small percentage of lawyers only during active litigation.”
Sen. Brad Hoylman-Sigal (D-Manhattan), one of the officials proposing a bill to block Dolan’s rejection of certain fans, lashed out after the MSG hocho spoke.
“New York shouldn’t allow petty tyrants to impose their warped fantasies on the public while reaping millions each year from taxpayer subsidies,” Hoylman-Sigal said.
The Garden uses facial recognition technology to identify, track and sometimes confront people who have criticized Dolan, according to reports. That includes celebrities Michael Rappaport and Spike Lee.
Actor Ethan Hawks also said he’s banned from MSG for criticizing the Knicks. And Knicks fan favorite Charles Oakley, a noted Dolan critic, was arrested in MSG in 2017 after a scuffle with security guards who were attempting to eject him from the arena.
Several fans have been booted from MSG for saying, “Sell the team.” In 2019, Dolan banned the New York Daily News from press events for critical coverage, including a back page urging him to sell. The NBA intervened and imposed a $50,000 fine on the Knicks.
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With Denis Slattery
