Families of people killed during the shooting in Uvalde, in the US state of Texas, and surviving victims took Meta to court on Friday, May 24, as well as the video game publisher Activision and the manufacturer of the murder weapon Daniel Defense, accused of having contributed to the killer’s act.
Two years ago today, on May 24, 2022, a former student at Robb Elementary School, Salvador Ramos (18 years old at the time), entered the premises, armed with a rifle AR-15 assault rifle, before firing. 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 in a press release lawyer Josh Koskoff, who represents the relatives and survivors who have decided to take legal action. After the Sandy Hook school massacre in 2012, Mr. 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.
“A three-headed monster”
For him, in the Uvalde affair, Meta, Activision and Daniel Defense form “a three-headed monster”who has “exposed, knowingly”Salvador Ramos “with the weapon, made him 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 ” allow “ according to him “arms manufacturers to come into contact with consumers”including from 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.
Nearly a hundred police officers also brought to justice
“The Uvalde shooting was horrific and tragic and we express our support for the families and individuals who remain affected by this senseless act of violence”, reacted an Activision spokesperson to Agence France-Presse (AFP). She added that “millions of people play video games around the world without subsequently committing horrible acts”.
The same families and survivors sued nearly 100 Texas State Police officers on Wednesday, accusing them of making mistakes during the shooting. A report from the Ministry of Justice published in January pointed to a “chess cascade” in the reaction of law enforcement.
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 (approximately 1.84 million euros) in compensation.