Crime & justice

Meta's New Mexico's Child Safety Lawsuit Goes to Trial

Is Meta hiding evidence of harm to teens or are lawsuits ignoring proof that social media helps young people?

Published FEB 3

Meta's New Mexico's Child Safety Lawsuit Goes to Trial

Story

Above: Meta Platforms Inc. app icons on a smartphone in London, England, on Dec. 4, 2025. Image credit: Betty Laura Zapata/Bloomberg/Getty Images

The Facts

Jury selection for the New Mexico Attorney General's lawsuit against Meta began on Monday in Santa Fe, with opening statements scheduled for Feb. 9. The trial is expected to last nearly two months, and approximately 200 Santa Fe County residents have been called for jury selection.
The Washington Times
Santa Fe New Mexican
The lawsuit, filed in December 2023 by Attorney General Raúl Torrez, accuses Meta of creating a marketplace for predators who target children for sexual exploitation and failing to disclose harmful effects. Meta denies the civil charges and says prosecutors are taking a "sensationalist" approach.
AP News
The Washington Times
New Mexico Department of Justice
New Mexico's case is built on an undercover investigation using proxy social media accounts posing as minors aged 14 and younger to document sexual solicitations. The state alleges Meta's responses to reported behavior placed profits ahead of children's safety.
Santa Fe New Mexican
AP News
FOX News
In 2024, three men were arrested as part of "Operation MetaPhile" and charged with using Meta's platforms to solicit sex with underage children. Attorney General Torrez stated the suspects communicated through Facebook's messenger app and expressed sexual interest in children.
guardian
FOX News
A federal judge denied Meta's motion to dismiss the case in May 2024, rejecting the company's claim of immunity under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. The court also dismissed Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg as a defendant in the case, but allowed the case to proceed through discovery.
New Mexico Department of Justice
Tech Policy Press
The state's Unfair Practices Act allows penalties of $5,000 per violation. A jury will weigh whether Meta engaged in unfair business practices, but a judge will have final say on civil penalties and the public nuisance charge.
AP News
The Washington Times

Sources Split

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The Spin

Techno-skeptic narrative

Meta is trying to hide damning evidence from the jury by blocking references to teen suicide cases, mental health research and its own internal surveys showing rampant inappropriate content. The company's aggressive attempts to exclude information about its AI chatbots, Zuckerberg's past and its massive financial resources reveal a corporation more concerned with protecting its reputation than addressing how its platforms facilitated child exploitation and sexual abuse.

Wired

Senate Democrats on X

Techno-optimist narrative

For over a decade, Meta has consistently prioritized teen safety by implementing built-in protections such as Teen Accounts, private defaults for minors and tools that give parents control over their children's social media use. Recent lawsuits cherry-pick internal documents to construct a misleading narrative while ignoring scientific evidence showing teen depression rates have actually declined as social media use increased, proving these platforms provide crucial benefits for young people seeking community and opportunity.