Families of those killed in the Uvalde, Texas, shooting and surviving victims sued Meta on Friday, along with video game publisher Activision and the manufacturer of the murder weapon, accused of contributed to the killer’s act.
On May 24, 2022, a former student of Robb elementary school, Salvador Ramos (18 years old at the time), entered the premises armed with an AR-15 assault rifle, before shooting.
He caused the death of 19 children as well as two teachers and injured 17 before being shot dead.
“There is a direct link between the conduct of these companies and the Uvalde shooting,” said lawyer Josh Koskoff, who represents the relatives and survivors who have decided to take legal action, in a statement.
For him, Meta, Activision and Daniel Defense, manufacturer of the weapon, form “a three-headed monster”, which “knowingly exposed” Salvador Ramos “to the weapon, brought him to the see it as a way to solve his problems, and trained him to use it.”
He pointed out the responsibility of Instagram, a subsidiary of Meta, which “allows” according to him “arms manufacturers to come into contact with consumers”, including those of a young age.
As for Activision, the publisher “should stop training and accustoming children to kill,” insisted the lawyer. The Activision Blizzard studio was bought in fall 2023 by Microsoft.
He is notably the publisher of the first-person shooter Call of Dutywhich features a character forced to kill his opponents with firearms or knives to fulfill his mission or defend himself.
The subpoena against Meta and Activision was filed in a Los Angeles court and the one against Daniel Defense in Uvalde.
“The Uvalde shooting was horrific and tragic and we express our support to the families and individuals who remain affected by this senseless act of violence,” responded an Activision spokesperson to AFP.
She added that “millions of people play video games around the world without subsequently committing horrible acts.”
Requested by AFP, Meta and Daniel Defense did not immediately respond.
The same families and survivors subpoenaed nearly 100 Texas State Police officers Wednesday, accusing them of making mistakes during the shooting.
A report from the Ministry of Justice published in January pointed out a “cascade of failures” in the reaction of the police.
Relatives of the victims also announced on Wednesday that they had reached an amicable agreement with the town hall of Uvalde, which provides for the payment of two million dollars in compensation.
Josh Koskoff made his name by obtaining, in 2022, the American arms manufacturer Remington to pay $73 million in damages to the families of nine victims of the Sandy Hook school shooting (2012).