An Ohio judge dismissed Facebook from a lawsuit filed by the family of a man whose killer shot him and shared the video on the social media site. The victim’s family had accused Facebook of acting negligently for not spotting and then reporting the posted threats by the shooter.
The shooter shared the video of himself shooting the 74-year-old man on a street in Cleveland. His video remained live on the site for around two hours, and it was shared and viewed millions of times during that period. A few days later, the shooter also shot and killed himself following a police chase in Pennsylvania.
Despite the role of Facebook postings in the incident, a judge in Cleveland said that the social media giant couldn’t be held responsible for the murder. Lawyers for the tech company said that the man’s family did not show that Facebook could have screened and found the post from one of its billions of users. Facebook, they argued, didn’t have the ability to act quickly in a way that could have prevented the death of the retiree.
Representatives of the family said that they were considering their options moving forward and may file an appeal in the case. While Facebook was dismissed from the case, the family’s lawsuit is going forward against the estate of the shooter himself.
A wrongful death lawsuit can help loved ones seek justice and accountability. Spouses, children or parents of a deceased loved one can consult with a Columbus wrongful death attorney about how they can seek compensation.