British Columbia sues OpenAI over Tumbler Ridge school shooting

FILE PHOTO: Workers install a fence around a makeshift memorial for the victims two days after a deadly mass shooting took place at a school in the town of Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada, February 12, 2026. REUTERS/Jennifer Gauthier/File Photo

Sept 21 (Reuters) - British Columbia sued OpenAI ⁠in California on Monday, saying a mass shooting at a school in the province could have been prevented if the company ⁠had warned local law enforcement that the shooter had used ChatGPT to plan the massacre.

The lawsuit filed in San Francisco ‌federal court names OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, as defendants. It is seeking damages to cover what the province has and will spend on its recovery from the February attack, as well as an order directing changes to the way the company handlesChatGPT conversations that could lead to violence.

Nine people, primarily children, were killed in the school shooting in ​Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia. The shooter, Jesse Van Rootselaar, had been flagged by the company’s ⁠safety team after her conversations about gun violence, but the ⁠company did not alert police.

Altman published a letter to the community, saying he was “deeply sorry” OpenAI had not contacted law enforcement. He promised ⁠reforms, ‌but never followed through, despite efforts from British Columbia’s attorney general to engage, the lawsuit says.

The school where the shooting took place is in the process of being demolished, and the province has been forced to absorb the costs of a replacement school, mental health care ⁠and other effects of the shooting, according to the lawsuit.

Drew Pusateri, a spokesperson for ​OpenAI, called the Tumbler Ridge shooting an unspeakable ‌tragedy.

“OpenAI remains committed to working collaboratively with government and law enforcement officials, and continuing to advance our ongoing safety work,” Pusateri ⁠said.

British Columbia’s lawsuit comes ​after more than 30 family members of victims and others impacted by the attack filed lawsuits in California federal court, accusing the company of opting out of a chance to prevent the shooting.

Van Rootselaar shot her mother and stepbrother at home before killing an educational assistant and five students aged 12 to 13 at her ⁠former school on February 10, according to police. Van Rootselaar, who was 18, then ​died by suicide.

Van Rootselaar’s interactions with ChatGPT were first flagged by the company in June 2025. Safety team members recommended contacting the police, but Altman and other OpenAI leadership overruled them, the lawsuit says, citing OpenAI whistleblowers who spoke to the Wall Street Journal in the wake of the shooting.

The shooter's ⁠account was deactivated, but she was able to get a new account and continue using the platform to plan her attack.

Following publication of the Wall Street Journal article, the company said the account was flagged by systems that identify "misuses of our models in furtherance of violent activities," but the issues did not meet its internal criteria for reporting to law enforcement.

The lawsuit comes after a series of cases against OpenAI have been filed in ​US state and federal courts in recent months over claims ChatGPT facilitated violence, including lawsuits relatedto a ⁠mass shooting at Florida State University last year.

In June, Florida became the first state to sue OpenAI over safety risks, accusing the company of misrepresenting ​the safety of its ChatGPT platform, which the lawsuit said has harmed children by providing ‌information to school shooters, offering guidance on self-harm and addicting young users.

OpenAI, which ​has denied the claims, has said it trains its models to refuse requests that could "meaningfully enable violence," and notifies law enforcement when conversations suggest "an imminent and credible risk of harm to others."

(Reporting by Diana Novak Jones, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Nia Williams)

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资料照片：2026年2月12日，在加拿大不列颠哥伦比亚省图姆布勒里奇镇一所学校发生致命大规模枪击事件两天后，工人们正在为遇难者搭建临时纪念碑并安装围栏。（路透社/詹妮弗·戈蒂埃/资料照片）

9 月 21 日（路透社）——不列颠哥伦比亚省周一在加利福尼亚州起诉 OpenAI，称如果该公司警告当地执法部门枪手使用 ChatGPT 策划了这场屠杀，该省一所学校发生的大规模枪击事件本可以避免。

这起在旧金山联邦法院提起的诉讼将OpenAI及其首席执行官Sam Altman列为被告。诉讼要求赔偿，以弥补该省为应对二月份袭击事件而已经和将要支付的损失，并要求法院下令该公司改变其处理可能导致暴力事件的ChatGPT对话的方式。

在加拿大不列颠哥伦比亚省图姆布勒里奇发生的校园枪击案中，九人丧生，其中大部分是儿童。枪手杰西·范·鲁特塞拉尔曾因谈论枪支暴力而被公司安全小组标记，但公司并未报警。

奥特曼向社区发表了一封公开信，表示他对OpenAI没有联系执法部门“深感抱歉”。诉讼称，他承诺进行改革，但尽管不列颠哥伦比亚省司法部长曾努力与他沟通，他却从未兑现承诺。

根据诉讼文件，发生枪击事件的学校正在被拆除，该省被迫承担重建学校、心理健康护理以及枪击事件其他后果的费用。

OpenAI 的发言人 Drew Pusateri 称 Tumbler Ridge 枪击案是一场无法言喻的悲剧。

“OpenAI 将继续致力于与政府和执法官员合作，并继续推进我们正在进行的安全工作，”普萨特里说。

在不列颠哥伦比亚省提起诉讼之前，已有 30 多名受害者家属和其他受袭击影响的人在加利福尼亚州联邦法院提起诉讼，指控该公司放弃了阻止枪击事件的机会。

据警方称，范·鲁特塞拉尔于2月10日在家中枪杀了她的母亲和继兄，随后在她曾经就读的学校杀害了一名教学助理和五名12至13岁的学生。18岁的范·鲁特塞拉尔随后自杀身亡。

诉讼称，范·鲁特塞拉尔与 ChatGPT 的互动最早于 2025 年 6 月被该公司发现。安全团队成员建议联系警方，但奥特曼和其他 OpenAI 领导层否决了他们的建议。诉讼还援引了枪击事件发生后向《华尔街日报》透露消息的 OpenAI 举报人的说法。

枪手的账号被停用了，但她又注册了一个新账号，继续利用该平台策划袭击。

在《华尔街日报》发表文章后，该公司表示，该账户已被识别“滥用我们的模型以推进暴力活动”的系统标记，但这些问题不符合其向执法部门报告的内部标准。

此前几个月，美国州法院和联邦法院已对 OpenAI 提起一系列诉讼，指控 ChatGPT 助长了暴力行为，其中包括与去年佛罗里达州立大学大规模枪击事件相关的诉讼。

6 月，佛罗里达州成为第一个就安全风险起诉 OpenAI 的州，指控该公司虚假宣传其 ChatGPT 平台的安全性。诉讼称，该平台通过向校园枪击案凶手提供信息、提供自残指导以及使年轻用户上瘾，对儿童造成了伤害。

OpenAI 否认了这些指控，并表示它训练其模型拒绝可能“实质上促成暴力”的请求，并在对话表明“对他人造成迫在眉睫且可信的伤害风险”时通知执法部门。

（Diana Novak Jones报道，Alexia Garamfalvi和Nia Williams编辑）

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