TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Attorneys for one of the victims killed in the 2025 FSU campus shooting announced a lawsuit against ChatGPT and its creator, OpenAI.
Tiru Chabba was one of two people killed and six others injured when investigators say Phoenix Ikner opened fire on campus in April 2025. Chabba was on campus working as a vendor for a food service company when he was shot. He was a father of two.
Tiru Chabba, a regional vice president for Aramark, was killed in the shooting on the campus of Florida State University.(The Strom Law Firm)
His family’s attorneys announced the lawsuit, which alleges negligence against ChatGPT, on Monday.
Lawyers claimed OpenAI has acknowledged it’s dangers and claimed the company has “put the dollar above the every day human.”
The lawsuit claims OpenAI brings in $2 billion each quarter and the free access tier of the program is “specifically intended to convert free users to paid users through demonstrations of usefulness of the product.”
Attorney’s cited chat logs between Ikner and ChatGPT leading up to the shooting, saying the shooting was preventable.
“Ikner had extensive conversations with ChatGPT, which, cumulatively, would have led any thinking human to conclude he was contemplating an imminent plan to harms others,” the lawsuit claims. “However, ChatGPT either defectively failed to connect the dots or else it was never properly designed to recognize that threat.”
“He used ChatGPT as a co-conspirator to commit mass murder,” attorney Bakari Sellers said.
Watch full press conference below:
The lawsuit details the events of the campus shooting, and claims ChatGPT “inflamed and encouraged Ikner’s delusions.”
One attorney said ChatGPT needed to eliminate issues before it was put to market, saying the full extent of what the program could lead to isn’t known.
Attorneys raised concerns about the use of the chat bot, especially in young people. “Teenagers use ChatGPT as their personal life coach,” one attorney said.
The lawsuit claims the chat bot “bonded” with Ikner and “flattered and praised him.” Citing the chat logs, the lawsuit says Ikner described his depression to ChatGPT and it advised him to seek out a therapist.
“However, when Ikner questioned ChatGPT about suicide, ChatGPT responded with statistical analysis of suicide rates among different groups and information of effects of suicide on others,” the lawsuit reads. “Only twice in response to numerous questions from Ikner about suicide did ChatGPT provide the pre-trained suicide hotline response.”
In a statement, an OpenAI spokesperson said the program has “advanced safety systems to help detect and respond to misuses and risks of real-world harm” and that ChatGPT “encouraged the individual to seek real world support, including from mental health professionals.”
The lawsuit claims OpenAI’s system is built to keep people engaged, saying it “stayed in the conversation, perpetuated it, accepted Ikner’s framing, elaborated on it, and asked tangential follow-up questions to keep Ikner engaged.”
Attorney Jim Bannister, who represents the Chabba family, expressed the family’s gratitude for those who have stepped in to help them.
“They want everyone to know how thankful they are for everyone who has stepped in to be physically present,” Bannister said. “This lawsuit is uncomfortable.”
An OpenAI spokesperson said the company shared information with law enforcement after learning about the suspect’s account.
“Last year’s mass shooting at Florida State University was a tragedy, but ChatGPT is not responsible for this terrible crime. After learning of the incident, we identified an account believed to be associated with the suspect and proactively shared this information with law enforcement. We continue to cooperate with authorities. In this case, ChatGPT provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources on the internet, and it did not encourage or promote illegal or harmful activity. ChatGPT is a general-purpose tool used by hundreds of millions of people every day for legitimate purposes. We work continuously to strengthen our safeguards to detect harmful intent, limit misuse, and respond appropriately when safety risks arise.”
This marks the second lawsuit against ChatGPT for its role in last year’s campus shooting.
The legal team representing Robert Morales, the other victim killed in the shooting, have announced plans to file a lawsuit against ChatGPT, claiming the suspected gunman had “constant communication” with the AI chatbot before the shooting.
Attorney Dean LeBoeuf, who represents Robert Morales, said they support this new lawsuit.
“We are working with the Chabba family’s lawyers and we feel their claim is meritorious,” LeBoeuf said. “We are in the final stages of finalizing our complaint and deciding where we are going to file it.”
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced a criminal investigation into OpenAI and ChatGPT in April after a review of the chat logs between Ikner and the program.
The full lawsuit can be read here:
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