Meta Platforms and TikTok owner ByteDance must face a wrongful death lawsuit by the mother of a 15-year-old Manhattan boy who died while “subway surfing” on a moving train, a New York state judge ruled.
Meta Platforms and TikTok owner ByteDance must face a wrongful death lawsuit by the mother of a 15-year-old Manhattan boy who died while “subway surfing” on a moving train, a New York state judge ruled.
Justice Paul Goetz ruled on Friday that Norma Nazario can try to prove Meta and ByteDance “goaded” her son Zackery into subway surfing by addicting him to Instagram and TikTok, where he viewed content about “dangerous challenges.”
Meta, ByteDance and Snapchat parent Snap have faced thousands of lawsuits saying their platforms are addictive, causing harm to children, schools and governments.
Zackery Nazario died on February 20, 2023, after he and his girlfriend climbed atop a Brooklyn-bound J train as it crossed the Williamsburg Bridge.
Goetz said Norma Nazario may pursue wrongful death, product liability and negligence claims.
He dismissed her claims against New York City’s Metropolitan Transit Authority, saying common sense and “the realities of life in this city” should have signaled to Zackery that subway surfing was dangerous.
Meta, ByteDance and their lawyers had no immediate comment. Norma Nazario’s lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The MTA did not immediately respond to a similar request.
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