B.C. retains California counsel to pursue legal action against OpenAI
The province is exploring lawsuits against OpenAI over the company's failure to alert police about the Tumbler Ridge shooter's flagged threats.
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British Columbia is moving to hold OpenAI accountable for failing to alert authorities about violent threats made on ChatGPT months before the February 2026 mass shooting at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School.
On February 10, an 18-year-old shooter killed eight people and wounded several others. An investigation later revealed that threats were made by the shooter on the ChatGPT platform prior to the attack.
B.C. Attorney General Niki Sharma announced Tuesday, July 7 that the province has retained legal counsel in both B.C. and California to explore the legal options available. The state of investigations shows OpenAI's own safety teams flagged the violent prompts months before the attack, but company leadership did not notify police or local authorities.
"When there are serious concerns that opportunities to prevent harm were missed, we have a responsibility to act. We owe that to the victims, their families and everyone whose life was changed by this tragedy," Sharma said at a news conference in Vancouver.
In April, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman issued a public apology, saying he was "deeply sorry" the company did not alert law enforcement to the account that was banned in June. Sharma called the apology "grossly insufficient" at the time.
Any money recovered through legal action would go toward supporting recovery efforts in the Tumbler Ridge community. The Province remains focused on long-term support for victims' families, including planning for a new school being supported by the Government of Canada.
