In Oakland, California, a federal courtroom became the stage for a pivotal lawsuit against Meta Platforms, the parent company of Instagram and Facebook. Attorneys general from California, Colorado, Kentucky and New Jersey opened the case Tuesday, seeking billions of dollars in damages and demanding fundamental changes to how Meta operates its social‑media platforms.

States claim Meta exploits children’s developing brains

Deputy Attorney General Megan O’Neill of the California Department of Justice told the eight‑person jury that Meta “knew a lot about kids’ brains,” citing research showing that children are especially sensitive to rewards, social feedback and impulse control. She argued that Meta used this knowledge to design features that keep young users engaged for as long as possible, harvest their data and hide the resulting harms from the public.

The lawsuit, filed in 2023, alleges that Meta deliberately created addictive experiences for minors and failed to enforce its own age‑restriction policies. Although users under 13 are prohibited from joining the platforms, the states say Meta allowed accounts to remain active on Instagram even after a linked Facebook account was disabled for age violations.

Former Meta engineer testifies on ignored safety research

The states called former Meta engineering director Arturo Béjar as their first witness. Béjar, who worked at Facebook from 2009 to 2015 and returned as a contractor from 2019 to 2021, testified that internal safety research was often diluted before reaching product teams. He cited an example involving eating‑disorder content, saying engineers had “very good ideas” to improve safeguards, but those proposals were reduced to “a little pebble that didn’t make a difference.”

Meta’s defense focuses on existing safety efforts

Meta’s counsel, Paul Schmidt, acknowledged that some minors lie about their ages and that teens sometimes struggle with time management on the apps. He emphasized the company’s ongoing efforts to make its platforms safer and to be transparent with the public. Schmidt framed much of the lawsuit as a disagreement over how to improve safety, rather than a claim that Meta has done nothing.

Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers, appointed by President Barack Obama in 2011, is presiding over the six‑week trial. She has overseen high‑profile technology cases, including the lawsuit between Elon Musk’s X Corp. and OpenAI, as well as Epic Games’ dispute with Apple.

Potential consequences and broader context

If the jury finds in favor of the states, the court could impose a substantial financial penalty. Meta has warned that a loss could expose the company to up to $1.4 trillion in damages, though experts say such a figure is unlikely.

The case joins a growing wave of litigation against major social‑media firms, with plaintiffs alleging that platforms harm young people, illegally collect data from minors and are engineered to be addictive. Outside the courthouse, parents and child‑safety advocates gathered with photos of children who have died by suicide after alleged social‑media harassment. One mother, Mary Rodee, described how her son’s death after being sextorted on Facebook Messenger motivated her to help compile a banner listing the names and ages of children she believes were lost to similar harms.

As the trial proceeds, both sides will present expert testimony and internal documents that could shape future regulations on how technology companies protect children’s mental health and privacy.

Original reporting: Dallas TX News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.