Law firm Edelson PC filed 30 additional lawsuits against OpenAI in a California court on Tuesday, September 2, 2026, expanding litigation tied to the Tumbler Ridge mass shooting that left eight people dead in February. The new complaints bring the total number of suits from the firm to 37 and, for the first time, accuse OpenAI of aiding and abetting the attack — a more serious legal claim than the negligence allegations in the original seven filings.
The shooting occurred on February 10 in Tumbler Ridge, British Columbia, Canada, when teenager Jesse Van Rootselaar killed her mother and half-brother at home before going to Tumbler Ridge Secondary School, where she killed six more people and injured dozens of others before dying by suicide. The new plaintiffs include teachers, a principal, and students who were present during the attack but were not physically shot.
At the center of the lawsuits is OpenAI’s decision not to alert Canadian law enforcement despite internal staff reportedly raising alarms about Van Rootselaar’s ChatGPT conversations, which included discussions of gun violence and planning an attack. OpenAI deactivated her account, but she created a new one shortly after. The company has said her activity did not meet its internal threshold for an “imminent and credible risk” of serious harm requiring law enforcement contact.
The new complaints specifically name OpenAI Chief Global Affairs Officer Chris Lehane as the person who directed staff not to contact authorities, alleging that placing the company’s threat-assessment team under his oversight prioritized public relations over safety. OpenAI has denied Lehane’s involvement. He is not listed as a defendant, though CEO Sam Altman is. The complaints also name Altman as having ratified the decision.
To counter OpenAI’s privacy and imminence defenses, the complaints point to a November 2025 incident in which OpenAI locked down its San Francisco offices, notified police, and circulated a suspect’s name and photo to employees — despite acknowledging there was “no indication of active threat activity” at the time.
The aiding and abetting claim is expected to face early dismissal challenges, as it requires proving intent on OpenAI’s part. The cases are proceeding alongside separate lawsuits alleging ChatGPT’s design contributed to user suicides and violent acts.
Source: TechCrunch