British Columbia is preparing to sue US-based artificial intelligence company OpenAI for failing to report threats detected before a school attack. Attorney General Niki Sharma announced on Tuesday, July 7, that Vancouver-based CFM Lawyers and California-based Stranch, Jennings & Garvey have been retained to explore all legal avenues to hold OpenAI and its decision-makers accountable.
The lawsuit is linked to the mass attack at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School on February 10. The attacker, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, killed his mother and 11-year-old stepbrother at the family home before going to the school and opening fire. Five students and one teaching assistant were killed, and 27 others were injured. The attacker later committed suicide. The victims included children aged 12 and 13.
According to the Attorney General's office, OpenAI employees flagged the attacker's ChatGPT account eight months before the attack, determining it posed a genuine threat of gun violence, and strongly recommended to senior management that Canadian authorities be notified. However, the company's management did not inform the police or local officials.
Sharma said, "Our thoughts remain with the families who lost loved ones, the injured, and the entire Tumbler Ridge community. As the community continues to heal, our government is focused on supporting the victims and holding those responsible to account. When there are serious concerns that opportunities to prevent harm were missed, we have an obligation to act. We must do this for the victims, their families, and everyone whose life was changed by this tragedy."
Sharma also said, "British Columbia has never shied away from confronting powerful corporations when their actions harm people and communities. We are taking this step because of serious concerns about OpenAI's failure to notify law enforcement after threats were detected on its platform. When public safety is at stake, no company or executive should escape scrutiny."
Provincial officials stated that their lawsuit will proceed separately and independently from the lawsuits filed by some victims' families against OpenAI in the US District Court for the Northern District of California.
