British Columbia sues OpenAI and Sam Altman over Tumbler Ridge school shooting

Lawsuit filed in California

The Canadian province of British Columbia initiated legal action in California on September 21, 2026, against OpenAI and Chief Executive Sam Altman. Provincial authorities allege that the artificial intelligence company failed to notify law enforcement about violent messages and threats written on ChatGPT prior to a deadly school shooting. The claim filed in American court targets what officials describe as systemic product safety gaps and lapses in communication with emergency services. British Columbia asserts that OpenAI had access to user records that could have allowed police officers to intervene before the attack took place.

Provincial justice minister Niki Sharma announced the lawsuit, outlining the province's decision to pursue legal remedies against the technology company.

Today, British Columbia is filing a lawsuit against OpenAI in California for failing to inform law enforcement of threats made on its platform before the Tumbler Ridge school mass shooting.

Details of the Tumbler Ridge shooting

The shooting occurred on February 10 in Tumbler Ridge, a rural town located in the western Canadian province. Jesse Van Rootselaar, a young transgender resident of the town, began the assault at the family home by fatally shooting her mother and her half-brother. Jesse Van Rootselaar then drove to her former middle and secondary school to continue the attack. Inside the school building, five students aged 12 and 13 and a 39-year-old educator were shot and killed.

Following the killings inside the school, Jesse Van Rootselaar died by suicide. The assault produced shock across Canada, a country that experiences relatively few mass shootings compared to the United States. Police records indicated that officers had previously visited the family home on several occasions due to ongoing mental health difficulties involving the shooter.

Account suspension in June 2025

Scrutiny regarding OpenAI's safety monitoring intensified after details emerged about Jesse Van Rootselaar's previous interactions with ChatGPT. Company records confirmed that OpenAI had identified an account registered to the shooter in June 2025, approximately eight months before the attack occurred. Following an internal review of the account, OpenAI suspended user access but did not inform Canadian law enforcement agencies about the account's contents or the suspension.

The provincial government argues that this decision left local authorities without critical information regarding potential threats. According to the lawsuit, OpenAI possessed sufficient data within its user logs to recognize safety risks and provide early warnings to police forces in British Columbia.

Safety thresholds and legal arguments

OpenAI defended its handling of the account by pointing to its established reporting criteria for law enforcement escalation. The company stated that the content found on the suspended account did not meet the specific standard required to notify external authorities. According to OpenAI, the messages did not demonstrate that the preparation of an attack was either credible or imminent at the time of the review.

British Columbia disputes this defense in its court filing, arguing that the company's internal safety policies proved insufficient to prevent violence. The province seeks to hold OpenAI accountable for failing to utilize its platform records to alert officers and avert the attack in Tumbler Ridge.