Two shocking lawsuits allege that Instagram and Call of Duty “developed” the 18-year-old shooter who killed 19 fourth-graders and two teachers in the 2022 Robb Elementary School massacre in Uvalde, Texas.
Families of the victims filed separate lawsuits in California and Texas on Friday, two years after the deadliest school shootings.
The documents say the parent company of a social media channel and a video game, as well as the manufacturer of the AK-47-style firearm used by Salvatore Ramos, helped train and equip the teen for the mass murders.
“There is a direct connection between the actions of these companies and the Uvalde shooting,” said Josh Koskoff, an attorney for the families.
“The three-headed monster deliberately showed him the weapon, conditioned him to see it as a tool to solve problems, and trained him to use it.”
According to the lawsuit, Ramos began playing Call of Duty at age 15, including a version that allowed him to effectively practice with the same version of the rifle he later used in the massacre, helping make video game publisher Activision Blizzard “the most prolific and effective distributor of assault weapons in the United States.”
In the same lawsuit, the families also accused Instagram of failing to enforce its own rules that allowed gun maker Daniel Defense to advertise and sell its deadly products online.
One such ad featured an image of a person removing an assault rifle from the trunk of a car with the caption “Refuse to be a victim.”
The second lawsuit, filed in Texas, alleges that Daniel Defense violated state law by allowing Ramos to open an account with an online store before her 18th birthday.
Ramos eventually ordered the gun over the Internet and picked it up at a gun shop in Uvalde, where he purchased a second gun.
The company also reportedly gained new customers through social media and Call of Duty.
“At the same time, Instagram was luring shooters in with blatant and aggressive marketing. In addition to hundreds of images depicting and glorifying the thrill of combat, Daniel Defense used Instagram to celebrate the illegal and deadly use of weapons,” the family’s lawyers said in a statement.
“We extend our deepest condolences to Uvalde’s family,” an Activision spokesperson told The Washington Post, but added that “millions of people around the world enjoy playing video games without resorting to horrific acts.”
Neither Mehta nor Daniel Defense responded to requests for comment.
The latest lawsuit comes just days after some of the victims’ families filed a $500 million lawsuit against Texas law enforcement officials and officers involved in law enforcement lapses that day.
More than 370 federal, state and local law enforcement officers responded to the scene but waited more than an hour before confronting the shooter inside classrooms, where students and teachers lay dead, dying or wounded.
With post wire
