BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Two years after the racially motivated Buffalo mass shooting both criminal and civil legal action continues in the courtroom.
“The social media platforms, the firearms industry, they're putting profits over public safety," said attorney John Elmore, who represents both survivors and the family members of victims.
About one year after the mass shooting, Elmore filed the first of its kind lawsuit – going after the social media companies – alleging gunman Payton Gendron was deliberately radicalized by the platforms.
"We believe that the internet platforms knew of this danger, they could have prevented it and they profited from it," added Elmore.
So far, the families and survivors have won every major motion in the case. They're seeking monetary relief that would be determined in a trial.
Also in civil court, New York State Attorney General Letita James sued "Mean Arms" last year. The suit alleges the gun accessory manufacturer aided in "the illegal possession of assault weapons in New York." The Buffalo shooting is used as evidence of that.
The company said the device was developed for states with “intrusive laws requiring fixed magazine.” That case is also pending.
In state court, Gendron pleaded guilty to 10 counts of first-degree murder six months after the shooting, sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Gendron also faces charges in federal court, indicted on hate crime and firearms charges.This January, the government announced they are seeking the death penalty. It's the first capital case authorized by Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Biden Administration. The federal trial is set to begin next September.
"But the bottom line is that we're not going to go away. We're not going to stop. We're not going to give up," said Elmore.
Public defenders representing Gendron are currently reviewing his jailhouse records before they are turned over to federal prosecutors, as they attempt to save his life.
