Thirty new complaints were filed in a San Francisco federal court on Wednesday against OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, over a school shooting in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, that killed five students and a teacher in February 2026. The plaintiffs include students, teachers, and a principal who were present during the attack.
According to NPR, the lawsuits make new allegations that go beyond an earlier round of suits filed in April. The April complaints, brought by families of seven victims, accused OpenAI of failing to notify law enforcement about violent conversations the alleged shooter had with ChatGPT. The new filings add a different claim: that officials responsible for OpenAI's public relations overrode its safety team's recommendation to refer the account to authorities.
The new complaints specifically name Chris Lehane, OpenAI's chief global affairs officer, as someone who intervened in that internal decision.
The alleged shooter, 18-year-old Jesse Van Rootselaar, killed five students and a teacher before killing herself, according to authorities. Around two dozen others were injured. Authorities later determined she had also killed her mother and 11-year-old half-brother at their home before arriving at the school.
Eight months before the shooting, in June 2025, OpenAI's automated systems flagged Van Rootselaar's ChatGPT account for "gun violence activity and planning." OpenAI deactivated the account, but Van Rootselaar created a second account and continued using ChatGPT.
"What these complaints show is the larger impact and how many people's lives were really destroyed all based on decisions made by people at OpenAI," said Jay Edelson, the lead attorney representing the Tumbler Ridge victims and their families.
OpenAI pushed back on the claims. Jason Kwon, OpenAI's chief strategy officer, said in an emailed statement to NPR: "It's so frustrating to see one of the lawyers currently suing OpenAI make false claims not only about these teams, but individuals who were not involved in the process."
Kwon specifically disputed the claims about Lehane. "As just one example, it is absolutely false to say Chris Lehane was involved with our original referral decision, or that our investigators report to him in any way. It's also completely untrue to say that the people at the center of these challenging decisions do not prioritize safety, or that there are 'political' or 'public relations' factors at play," Kwon said. "We've been approaching this litigation with respect for both the legal process and the families and victims of this tragedy, and we'll continue to engage in good faith with that process."
The Tumbler Ridge shooting is considered among the worst in Canadian history. The litigation is now centered in federal court in San Francisco, where both the April suits and the 30 new complaints are pending.
