Uvalde Shooting Families Sue Gun Manufacturer, Meta, Activision

Families of the Uvalde, Texas elementary school shooting victims filed lawsuits Friday against the manufacturer of the AR-15 rifle used in the attack, the publisher of the “Call of Duty” video game, and Instagram parent company Meta Platforms Inc.

The two complaints—one filed in California, the other in Texas—allege the companies provided the Robb Elementary shooter, Salvador Ramos, with the information, encouragement, and weapon that he used to kill 21 people on May 24, 2022.

“How, then, did the Uvalde Shooter—a poor and isolated teenager in a small town in Texas—set his sights on the DDM4V7 as his weapon of choice?” the complaint says referencing the gun by its model number. “How, for that matter, did he learn what an AR-15 is and what it excels at? The answer lies in the conduct of Defendants, who knowingly exposed the Shooter to the weapon, conditioned him to see it as the solution to his problems, and trained him to use it.”

The complaint filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court targets “Call of Duty” publisher Activision Blizzard Inc. and Meta, saying the companies encourage vulnerable young men like Ramos to become violent.

“Defendants are chewing up alienated teenage boys and spitting out mass shooters,” it states.

Activision “is in the wildly lucrative business of training adolescents to become gunmen,” the families allege. “Its first-person shooter franchise, Call of Duty, creates a vividly realistic and addicting theater of violence in which teenage boys learn to kill with frightening skill and ease.”

Meta’s Instagram platform promotes AR-15 style rifles through images of influencers, celebrities, and others with the guns, the complaint says.

An Activision spokesperson said in a statement: “The Uvalde shooting was horrendous and heartbreaking in every way, and we express our deepest sympathies to the families and communities who remain impacted by this senseless act of violence. Millions of people around the world enjoy video games without turning to horrific acts.”

The company is a unit of Microsoft Corp.

Meta didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The complaint brings claims of negligence, product liability, unjust enrichment, wrongful death, and violations of California’s business code. They are seeking damages, including funeral expenses.

Gunmaker Suit

The second complaint, filed in Uvalde District Court, alleges gun manufacturer Daniel Defense has a business strategy that targets adolescent men such as Ramos, who was 18 the day of the shooting.

“Daniel Defense courted the Uvalde Shooter with a marketing and sales scheme it had devised to lure him and other adolescents into a relationship with its brand of AR-15s, particularly its flagship DDM4v7,” the complaint says.

Daniel Defense didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

The suit brings claims of negligence and strict liability for abnormally dangerous activity. The families are seeking damages in excess of $1 million, including punitive damages.

The lawsuits were filed on the two year anniversary of shooting.

Koskoff, Koskoff, & Bieder PC represents the families.

The cases are Mata v. Meta Platforms Inc., Cal. Super. Ct., complaint 5/24/24 and Rubio v. Daniel Defense LLC, Tex. Dist. Ct., complaint 5/23/24.