OpenAI Faces 37 Lawsuits Over Tumbler Ridge School Shooting
OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman face dozens of lawsuits for allegedly failing to report a mass shooter's attack planning to Canadian authorities.
Victims and witnesses of the February 2026 Tumbler Ridge Secondary School massacre in British Columbia filed 30 new federal lawsuits in California against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman. These filings bring the total to 37 cases alleging the company acted with negligence and aided and abetted the shooting by failing to alert law enforcement about the suspect's violent interactions with ChatGPT.
The lawsuits claim that in June 2025, OpenAI's automated systems flagged 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar for gun violence activity and attack planning. While internal safety teams recommended referring the logs to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the complaints allege that Chief Global Affairs Officer Chris Lehane and Sam Altman overruled the recommendation to protect the corporate brand. Van Rootselaar killed eight people, including her mother, stepbrother, and five children, before dying by suicide.
OpenAI Chief Strategy Officer Jason Kwon denied that public relations factors influenced safety protocols or that investigators report to Lehane. Sam Altman issued a public apology in April for the failure to report the account. British Columbia Premier David Eby condemned the company's actions as inexcusable and disgraceful, stating the provincial government intends to join the litigation after OpenAI allegedly walked away from a mediation process.
