Relatives of the victims of the tragic Uvalde school shooting in Texas on May 24 filed two lawsuits against Meta, Microsoft, Activision Blizzard, and gun manufacturer Daniel Defense. The families claim that these companies collaborated to market dangerous weapons, specifically assault rifles, to impressionable teenagers like the Uvalde shooter. The lawsuits argue that Daniel Defense used Instagram and Activision’s Call of Duty video game to target teenagers, with Meta and Microsoft facilitating the strategy without proper oversight.
The complaints allege that Instagram provided an unsupervised platform for gun manufacturers to communicate directly with minors, while Call of Duty created a realistic and addictive environment where teenagers learned to use real-life weapons as models for the game’s firearms. The Uvalde shooter, who played Call of Duty and saw Daniel Defense’s advertisements on Instagram, became fixated on acquiring the same gun he eventually used in the school shooting.
One lawsuit was filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, accusing Instagram and Activision of contributing to the violent incident, while the other was filed in Uvalde County District Court specifically targeting Daniel Defense for targeting teenage males with their ads. The families’ attorney, Josh Koskoff, stated that there is a direct link between the actions of these companies and the Uvalde shooting, pointing to the role they played in exposing the shooter to the weapon and conditioning him to use it as a solution to his problems.
Daniel Defense has faced previous lawsuits and CEO Marty Daniel has dismissed them as politically motivated. In addition to the lawsuits against the companies, victims’ families also announced legal action against state police officers for their mishandled response to the shooting. The families have also reached a settlement with the city of Uvalde and have pending lawsuits against other public agencies involved in the incident.
The tragic Uvalde school shooting, which resulted in the deaths of 19 children and two adults, has sparked legal action against multiple parties involved in the marketing and distribution of firearms to teenagers. The families of the victims are seeking justice and accountability for the senseless loss of life that occurred on that fateful day.
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https://www.cnbc.com/2024/05/24/uvalde-school-shooting-call-of-duty-instagram-daniel-defense.html