“My prosecutors have looked at this, and they’ve told me if it was a person on the other end of the screen, we would be charging them with murder.”
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on Tuesday that the Office of Statewide Prosecution has launched a criminal investigation into OpenAI and its chatbot, ChatGPT, over its links to the gunman accused of killing two at Florida State University in 2025.
In a news conference, Uthmeier said that the messages that his office reviewed as part of an inquiry opened in March suggested that ChatGPT "offered significant advice to the shooter before he committed such heinous crimes." Uthmeier said, "My prosecutors have looked at this, and they’ve told me if it was a person on the other end of the screen, we would be charging them with murder."
A press release from Uthmeier’s office stated, "Florida law states that anyone who aids, abets, or counsels someone in the commission of a crime, and that crime is committed or attempted, may be considered a principal to the crime. The 'aider and abettor' is just as responsible for the crime as the perpetrator."
Phoenix Ikner has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder for opening fire at Florida State University in April of 2025, killing two. Attorneys representing the family of one of the victims raised concerns about ChatGPT’s involvement in the shooting in March.
"We have been advised that the shooter was in constant communication with ChatGPT leading up to the shooting. We also have reason to believe that ChatGPT may have advised the shooter how to commit these heinous crimes. We will therefore file suit against ChatGPT, and its ownership structure, very soon, and will seek to hold them accountable for the untimely and senseless death of our client, Mr. Morales," the attorneys said.
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