5 months ago
40
AUSTIN (US): Families in
Uvalde
took more legal action Friday on the second anniversary of the Robb Elementary
School attack
, suing
Meta Platforms
, which owns Instagram, and the maker of the video game
Call of Duty
over claims the companies bear responsibility for products used by the teenage gunman.
They also filed another
lawsuit
against Daniel Defense, which manufactured the AR-style rifle used in the May 24, 2022, shooting - and has already been sued.
It added to mounting lawsuits over the attack and came as the small Texas city gathered to mourn the anniversary of one of the deadliest school shootings in US history. The gunman killed 19 students and two teachers. Officers finally confronted and shot him after waiting more than an hour to enter the fourth-grade classroom.
Some of the same families on Wednesday filed a $500 million lawsuit against Texas state police officials and officers 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
inside the classroom.
Friday's lawsuits are not the first to accuse tech firms of having a role in radicalising shooters. Families of victims in a May 2022 attack on a New York supermarket sued social media firms, including Meta and Insta, over content on their platforms.
The lawsuit against Meta and Activision Blizzard - the maker of game Call of Duty - were filed in California with additional families of victims from the attack.
According to the lawsuits, the Uvalde shooter had played versions of Call of Duty since he was 15, including one that allowed him to effectively practice with the version of the rifle he used at the school. The families also accused Instagram of doing little to enforce its rules that ban marketing firearms and harmful content to children.
Activision called the Uvalde shooting "horrendous and heartbreaking in every way", but said millions of people around the world enjoy video games without turning to horrific acts." Daniel Defense and Meta did not respond to emails requesting comment.
