![]() Henry McMaster, who signed it into law.īefore Gavin’s death by suicide, scammers had reached out to him on Instagram, convinced him he was talking to a girl his age and persuaded him to send nude photos, his father says. State senators passed the bill and named it “ Gavin’s Law” before sending it to Gov. Since then, Guffey has been outspoken about his son’s death and sponsored legislation last year that makes sexual extortion an aggravated felony punishable by years in prison if the victim is a minor or vulnerable adult or if the victim suffers bodily injury or death directly related to the crime. Minutes before he died by suicide at his home in Rock Hill, South Carolina, Gavin texted his younger brother and his friends a heart-shaped symbol of love – <3 – on a black background. Gavin Guffey texted his friends shortly before his death In a statement emailed to CNN, a Meta spokesperson did not directly respond to the allegations in the lawsuit.īut the spokesperson said that teen safety is a big priority for the company and that it offers dozens of resources to help its young users stay safe. The company says it also encourages teens to seek help and to fight back if they’ve been targeted. In the suit, Guffey says Meta does not have tools in place to protect underage kids who use its platforms in “almost every aspect of their lives” and are unaware of its potentially negative effects. Brandon Guffey in an undated photo with his wife, Melissa, and their sons, Gavin, 17, Coen, 16, and Callahan, 4. It alleges that Meta uses algorithms to aggressively target adolescents and does not do enough to keep them safe from harm. The lawsuit, filed in South Carolina state court last week, accuses Meta’s social media platforms of causing a range of problems in children, including depression, low self-esteem, anxiety and eating disorders. Now Guffey is suing Instagram’s parent company, Meta, for wrongful death, gross negligence and other claims, saying it does not do enough to protect children like Gavin from online predators. The family began piecing together Gavin’s last moments and discovered he had encountered a scammer on Instagram and unwittingly became a victim of sexual extortion, a crime the FBI warns is increasingly targeting underage boys and leading to an alarming increase in suicides nationwide. Anyone on Gavin’s Instagram followers list who had the last name Guffey got similar messages, his father says. Then Guffey and his younger son began to get messages demanding money in exchange for nude photos of his late son. Gavin Guffey, 17, had fatally shot himself in a bathroom in July 2022, and the grieving father was searching for clues on what led to his suicide. Brandon Guffey says he received a private Instagram message with a laughing emoji. About two weeks after his oldest son’s funeral, South Carolina state house Rep.
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