British Columbia has sued OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman in San Francisco federal court, alleging the February 10 Tumbler Ridge school shooting that killed students and staff could have been prevented if the company had warned local law enforcement about the shooter’s ChatGPT use. Reuters reporting in The Guardian and CBC News said the province filed Monday, September 21, 2026, with coverage landing Tuesday.
The complaint names OpenAI and Altman and seeks damages for recovery costs — including a replacement school, mental health care, and related provincial outlays — plus injunctive relief directing safety changes to how ChatGPT conversations that could lead to violence are handled, according to those accounts. CBC reported the suit was filed jointly with Peace River South School District SD59. Attorney General Niki Sharma said in a September 21 statement on news.gov.bc.ca that the filing targets OpenAI’s failure to notify law enforcement of threats on its platform and that British Columbia is advocating stronger AI regulation. CBC also reported Sharma saying OpenAI refused to disclose the chats.
Per Reuters via The Guardian, the shooter, Jesse Van Rootselaar, had an account flagged in June 2025; safety team members recommended contacting police, but leadership overruled them, the suit alleges, citing OpenAI whistleblowers who spoke to the Wall Street Journal. The account was deactivated, the filing says, but a new account was created afterward. Those claims remain allegations in pending litigation and have not been proven in court. CBC said six children and two adults were killed and that the shooter died by suicide.
Altman previously apologized to the community, saying he was deeply sorry OpenAI did not alert law enforcement; the suit says he promised reforms but did not follow through despite engagement from the attorney general, Reuters reported. OpenAI spokesperson Drew Pusateri, in statements carried by The Guardian and Reuters, called Tumbler Ridge an unspeakable tragedy and said the company remains committed to working with government and law enforcement and advancing safety work. CBC carried a similar emailed statement.
The provincial case follows more than 30 private California suits over the same attack.