Tess Mata\u2019s parents were once enthusiastic about social media. The 10-year-old from Uvalde, Texas, wanted to be TikTok famous. She used to dance, sing and imitate popular trends on her videos, with mom Veronica and dad Jerry keeping a watchful eye on her online habits. <\/p>\n
But then Tess was gunned down at Robb Elementary School in 2022, one of 19 children and two teachers killed by a former student.<\/p>\n
Since then, as details of the shooter\u2019s personal life have become public, the Matas and a handful of other Uvalde families have come to believe that his exposure to gun content online and in video games led to the tragedy.<\/p>\n
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Jerry and Veronica Mata stand in front of the Spring Street Courthouse on July 17 in Los Angeles. After their daughter Tess was killed in the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, the couple are suing Meta, Activision and Daniel Defense in an attempt to challenge social media and video game marketing that they say urged the shooter to commit violence.<\/p>\n
(Juliana Yamada \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n
They are now suing three companies they allege profited off the violent fantasies that led to their children\u2019s deaths. The defendants include the maker of \u201cCall of Duty,\u201d a first-person military shooter game where they say 18-year-old Salvador Ramos encountered a virtual version of a Daniel Defense-branded AR-15 he used in the attack. They are also suing Meta, alleging Ramos encountered ads for the gun that promoted violence on Instagram. <\/p>\n
The Matas and three other families from Uvalde will travel more than 1,200 miles this week to confront the companies in L.A. County Superior Court, where they have filed claims for negligence, aiding and abetting and wrongful death. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey glorify these weapons. They made it enticing for young kids to want to purchase these guns, and kids that young are so receptive to these types of things,\u201d Veronica Mata told The Times.<\/p>\n
Activision, the Santa Monica-based video game developer, has filed for dismissal, arguing that the 1st Amendment protects \u201cCall of Duty\u201d as a work of art. Meta has also fought to have the case tossed, pointing to well-established case law that shields social media platforms from liability for third-party content posted by users and advertisers.<\/p>\n
Whether the case proceeds could be decided at a hearing Friday in downtown L.A.<\/p>\n
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Jerry Mata holds dog tag necklaces of his daughter Tess, one of 19 students killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, in 2022.<\/p>\n
(Juliana Yamada \/ Los Angeles Times)<\/p>\n
The families allege \u201cCall of Duty,\u201d one of the top-grossing video game franchises in the world, encouraged violence by catching Ramos in a repeated gameplay loop with real-world weapons. And they claim Instagram equipped him with the knowledge of how, when and where to buy the gun he used. <\/p>\n
\u201cTo put a finer point on it: Defendants are chewing up alienated teenage boys and spitting out mass shooters,\u201d the complaint claims, noting that the three most deadly K-12 school shootings in American history \u2014 Uvalde, Parkland and Sandy Hook \u2014 were all committed by young men who played \u201cCall of Duty\u201d and used an AR-15. <\/p>\n
\u201cCall of Duty is a simulation, not a game. It teaches players how to aim, reload, and fire accurately, while habituating the teenage nervous system to inflict repeated, graphic violence. And though the killing is virtual, the weapons are authentic,\u201d the complaint alleges.<\/p>\n
Ramos\u2019 choice of the Daniel Defense AR-15 was intentional, the lawsuit said. The small weapons manufacturer has a market share of less than 1%, but a specific rail displayed on a popular \u201cCall of Duty\u201d gun made it easily identifiable to players online despite a lack of branding inside the game. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the Defendants who gave Daniel Defense a direct line into children\u2019s homes and heads, who wrote a playbook for how to peddle firearms while circumventing parents and the law, and who created a simulation with real-life weapons and applauded children for their proficiency at killing,\u201d the complaint said.<\/p>\n
Meta did not immediately respond to The Times\u2019 request for comment, nor did Daniel Defense, another defendant in the lawsuit. <\/p>\n
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A photo of a weapon next to the truck that the Robb Elementary School shooter crashed before the shooting on May 24, 2022. <\/p>\n
(Pete Luna \/ Uvlade Leader-News)<\/p>\n
Courts have long rejected the idea that violent video games like \u201cCall of Duty\u201d are responsible for the actions of those who play them despite the moral panic surrounding the issue, and have also overturned efforts to restrict minors\u2019 access to them. <\/p>\n
Most modern \u201cCall of Duty\u201d games are rated for mature audiences over 17 by the Entertainment Software Ratings Board, but are available to minors through online marketplaces that don\u2019t meaningfully verify someone\u2019s age before purchase. <\/p>\n
\u201cAny adolescent that wants to download Call of Duty can do that,\u201d Josh Koskoff, a lawyer for the Uvalde families, told The Times. <\/p>\n