British Columbia sues OpenAI: ChatGPT could have helped prevent Canadian school shooting, lawsuit says

British Columbia has sued OpenAI in a California federal court, alleging the company could have helped prevent a mass shooting at a school in the Canadian province by alerting law enforcement to the suspect's use of ChatGPT, Bloomberg reported.

The lawsuit, filed on Monday in San Francisco, names OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman as defendants. It seeks damages to help cover the costs of the February shooting in Tumbler Ridge, as well as an order requiring changes to how the company handles ChatGPT conversations that could indicate plans for violence.

According to the lawsuit, suspect Jesse Van Rootselaar had used ChatGPT before the attack. On February 10, Van Rootselaar allegedly killed five students and an educational assistant at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, as well as her mother and half-brother, before dying by suicide. The victims included students aged 12 and 13.

OpenAI account flagged before shooting

The lawsuit alleges that OpenAI's safety team flagged Van Rootselaar's activity in June 2025 after conversations involving gun violence and recommended contacting police.

The Bloomberg report further mentioned that OpenAI internally flagged and banned one of Van Rootselaar's accounts for concerning activity in 2025 but did not alert Canadian authorities. The company later determined that she had a second account that had not been detected or stopped.

According to a separate report by The Guardian, the lawsuit alleges that OpenAI leadership, including Altman, overruled a recommendation from safety staff to contact police. The claims are based in part on accounts from OpenAI whistleblowers cited by The Wall Street Journal following the shooting.

The lawsuit also alleges that after the first account was deactivated, Van Rootselaar was able to create another account and continue using ChatGPT.

'One telephone call' could have prevented tragedy, lawsuit says

OpenAI says it is committed to safety work

"I'm deeply sorry," Altman said in the letter, according to The Guardian.