Snapchat Facing Product Liability Lawsuits Over Fentanyl Overdoses By Teens

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act essentially creates immunity for social media companies that publish third-party material. This includes advertisers. The legislation has broadly suppressed lawsuits that blame social media companies for a wide variety of problems including teen suicide and most recently, drug overdoses.

Snap Inc. is being sued by the parents of several teenagers who claim that their teens died of drug overdoses after purchasing quantities of fentanyl on Snapchat. The lawsuit accuses the social media company of being a “haven for drug trafficking” and that Snap regularly directs and recommends drug advertisements to minors.

A wrongful death lawsuit has since been filed against the social media company. It was first filed in 2022 by the parents and family members of 11 young victims, mostly teenagers. The plaintiffs contend that their children bought fentanyl from drug dealers they met over the Snapchat platform. All but one of the named victims in the lawsuit died of an overdose.

Can Snapchat be held liable for these deaths? 

Since the Communications Decency Act prohibits lawsuits filed against social media companies from being sued over third-party content, it remains unclear whether or not the plaintiffs can overcome the broad immunity that the legislation offers. However, the intent of the legislation was not to allow social media companies to operate open-air drug markets that target teenagers with fentanyl ads. Instead, it was meant to reduce litigation related to claims of wrongdoing by social media companies.

Just about anyone can place an ad on Facebook nowadays. The same holds true for other social media companies. Snap, in particular, is being targeted because of one of its most prominent features. Unlike other social media companies, like Facebook, where posts remain a permanent part of the user’s timeline, Snap automatically deletes posts within a specific period of time making it useful for drug dealers to skirt law enforcement investigations. This has led, the plaintiffs claim, to Snapchat being used as an open-air drug market for fentanyl dealers. This has, in turn, resulted in the deaths of at least 10 young people and injury to another.

The lawsuit will test the strength of the immunity afforded by the Communications Decency Act. Thus far, despite attempts by Snap Inc. to get the suit dismissed, a California judge has permitted the case to continue.

The lead plaintiffs in the case against Snapchat are the parents of a 14-year-old boy who lived in Orange County, California. According to the complaint, the boy died of a fentanyl overdose after purchasing a pill from a Snapchat dealer named “Aj Smokxy.” Even after the boy’s death remained public, the suit contends that Snap allowed his account to remain active for more than a year. After, the account was linked to two more deaths.

Talk to a Florida Product Liability Lawyer Today 

Halpern, Santos & Pinkert represents the interests of those injured by dangerous or defective products in Florida. Call our Florida personal injury lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin investigating your case right away.

Source:

courthousenews.com/judge-declines-to-trim-wrongful-death-lawsuit-against-snapchat-over-fentanyl-overdoses/