Uvalde families sue Meta and maker of Call of Duty on second anniversary of school attack

• Post by: Admin
• May 25 2024

The families of a group of victims of the Uvalde school massacre have announced new lawsuits against Instagram parent company Meta Platforms, the maker of the video game Call of Duty and the gun manufacturer that made the assault rifle used in the sh

Uvalde families sue Meta and maker of Call of Duty on second anniversary of school attack

The families of a group of victims of the Uvalde school massacre have announced new lawsuits against Instagram parent company Meta Platforms, the maker of the video game Call of Duty and the gun manufacturer that made the assault rifle used in the shooting

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Families in Uvalde took further legal action Friday on the second anniversary of the attack on Robb Elementary School, suing Meta Platforms, which owns Instagram, and the maker of the video game Call of Duty, claiming the companies are responsible for the products used by the teen shooter.

They also filed another lawsuit against Daniel Defense, the maker of the AR rifle used in the May 24, 2022, shooting — and which has already been sued.

That lawsuit joined mounting lawsuits over the attack and came as the small Texas town gathered to mourn the anniversary of one of the deadliest school massacres in U.S. history. The gunman killed 19 students and two teachers. Officers finally confronted him and shot him after waiting more than an hour to enter the fourth-grade classroom.

"There is a direct connection between the conduct of these companies and the shooting in Uvalde," said Josh Koskoff, an attorney for the families. "This three-headed monster knowingly exposed him to the gun, conditioned him to see it as a tool to solve his problems, and trained him to use it."

Some of the same families filed a $500 million lawsuit Wednesday against Texas State Police officers and troopers who were part of the botched law enforcement response that day. More than 370 federal, state and local officers responded but waited more than an hour to confront the shooter in the classroom as students and teachers lay dead, dying or wounded.

Friday's lawsuits are not the first to accuse technology companies of playing a role in radicalizing or influencing mass shooters. Families of victims of a May 2022 attack on a Buffalo, New York, supermarket sued social media companies, including Meta and Instagram, over content on their platforms.

The lawsuit against Georgia-based gun maker Daniel Defense was filed in Texas by the same group of 19 families that sued on Wednesday. The lawsuit against Meta and Activision Blizzard -- the maker of Call of Duty -- was filed in California along with additional families of victims of the attack.

Activision called the Uvalde shooting "horrific and heartbreaking in every way, and we extend our deepest sympathies to the families and communities that continue to be affected by this senseless act of violence. Millions of people around the world enjoy video games without turning to horrific acts."

A video game industry trade group also declined to blame games for violence, arguing that research has found no link.

"We are saddened and outraged by senseless acts of violence. At the same time, we discourage baseless accusations that link these tragedies to video games, as they distract from efforts to focus on the underlying issues and prevent future tragedies," the Entertainment Software Association said.

The amount of damages sought in the new lawsuits was not immediately clear.

According to the lawsuits, the Uvalde shooter had been playing various versions of Call of Duty since he was 15, including one that effectively allowed him to practice with the version of the rifle he used in school. The families also accused Instagram of barely enforcing its rules prohibiting the marketing of firearms and harmful content to children.

The Uvalde shooter opened an online account with Daniel Defense before his 18th birthday and purchased the rifle as soon as he could, the lawsuit said.

"At the same time, the shooter was courted on Instagram through explicit, aggressive marketing. In addition to hundreds of images depicting and worshipping the thrill of combat, Daniel Defense used Instagram to praise the illegal, murderous use of his weapons," the families' attorneys said in a statement.

Daniel Defense and Meta both did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.

In a congressional hearing in 2022, Marty Daniels, CEO of Daniel Defense, called the Uvalde shooting and similar cases “pure evil.”