Uvalde, Texas – Families impacted by the tragic 2022 elementary school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, have taken legal action by filing two lawsuits. The lawsuits target Instagram’s parent company Meta, Activision Blizzard, Microsoft, and gunmaker Daniel Defense, alleging that they collaborated to promote dangerous weapons to vulnerable teenagers, including the shooter involved in the Uvalde incident.
The lawsuits claim that Daniel Defense used Instagram and Activision’s video game “Call of Duty” to market assault-style rifles to teenage boys, with Meta and Microsoft providing inadequate oversight and disregarding the potential consequences. The defendants named in the lawsuits have not yet responded to requests for comment.
Following one of the deadliest school shootings in history, where 19 students and two teachers lost their lives, the legal complaints were filed on the two-year anniversary of the tragic event. The law firm handling the cases, Koskoff Koskoff & Bieder, previously secured a $73 million settlement with rifle manufacturer Remington on behalf of families affected by the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
One of the lawsuits accuses Meta’s Instagram of enabling gun manufacturers to directly reach minors with minimal supervision, while the other lawsuit targets Activision’s game “Call of Duty” for allegedly desensitizing teenage boys to violence. The Uvalde shooter, who had never used a real firearm before, reportedly played “Call of Duty” and frequently viewed gun advertisements on Instagram.
According to the lawsuits, Daniel Defense intentionally directed its ads towards adolescent boys to create long-term customers, ultimately influencing the Uvalde shooter’s actions. The families’ lawyer, Josh Koskoff, highlighted the connection between the defendants’ behavior and the tragic shooting, referring to them as a “three-headed monster.”
In addition to the lawsuits against the companies involved, the families of the victims have also pursued legal action against state police officers for their alleged mishandling of the emergency response during the shooting. As the legal battles continue, the families have reached a settlement with the city of Uvalde, while other suits against public agencies are still pending.