Father of CSULB Student Nohemi Gonzalez (Daughter Murdered In Paris Terror Attack) Sues <i>Twitter, Facebook, Google</i> With These Allegations In Fed'l Court Complaint

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Father of CSULB Student Nohemi Gonzalez (Daughter Murdered In Paris Terror Attack) Sues Twitter, Facebook, Google With These Allegations In Fed'l Court Complaint

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(June 15, 2016) -- Reynaldo Gonzalez, whose daughter/CSULB student Nohemi Gonzalez was murdered in a November 2015 Paris terrorist attack, has filed a lawsuit naming Twitter, Facebook and Google as defendants.

For the record, the lawsuit's allegations are detailed in the federal court complaint filed on June 14 and visible at this link.

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In response to the lawsuit, the defendants issued statements to media below:

Google: "Our hearts go out to the victims of terrorism and their families everywhere. While we cannot comment on pending litigation, YouTube has a strong track record of taking swift action against terrorist content. We have clear policies prohibiting terrorist recruitment and content intending to incite violence and quickly remove videos violating these policies when flagged by our users. We also terminate accounts run by terrorist organizations or those that repeatedly violate our policies."
Twitter: "Twitter strongly condemns the ongoing acts of violence for which ISIS claims credit, and our sympathies go out to those impacted by these acts of terror. We have partnered with others in industry, NGOs and governments to find better ways to combat the online manifestations of the larger societal problem at the core of violent extremism. As we stated earlier this year, violent threats and the promotion of terrorism deserve no place on Twitter and, like other social networks, our rules make that clear. We have teams around the world actively investigating reports of rule violations, identifying violating conduct, and working with law enforcement entities when appropriate. We believe this lawsuit is without merit."
Facebook "We extend our deepest sympathy to those affected by terror attacks. There is no place for terrorists or content that promotes or supports terrorism on Facebook, and we work aggressively to remove such content as soon as we become aware of it. Anyone can report terrorist accounts or content to us, and our global team responds to these reports quickly around the clock. If we see evidence of a threat of imminent harm or a terror attack, we reach out to law enforcement. This lawsuit is without merit and we will defend ourselves."

The Gonzalez lawsuit is similar to, but differs in some respects from, a lawsuit filed in January 2016 against Twitter by another law firm representing the wife of another American murdered in the Paris attacks. Twitter cited (and sought dimissal of that action) based on Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act which [rough paraphrase] exempts online services, in most cases, from liability for the actions of others.

At a federal court hearing on Wednesday (June 13), the trial judge in the Twitter lawsuit heard arguments and indicated he wasn't convinced that letting ISIS simply open accounts and not necessarily use them to recruit violated the federal Anti-Terrorism Act. The trial judge may or may not let the plaintiff/widow suing Twitter amend and refile her complaint (decision pending.)