Pueblo mom sues Facebook over alleged harm to 13-year-old daughter
A Pueblo mother who believes a Facebook addiction has caused serious physical and mental health problems for her 13-year-old daughter has filed a civil lawsuit against the technology conglomerate's parent company, Meta Platforms Inc., in U.S. District Court in Denver.
Cecelia Tesch filed the lawsuit July 20 against Meta and its various Facebook holdings through her attorney Kevin Hannon of the Denver office of Morgan & Morgan, an Orlando, Florida-based law firm. Meta, a Delaware-based corporation, owns Facebook and Instagram and has stated its goal is to build “technologies that help people connect, find communities and grow businesses,” according to its website.
In the 94-page lawsuit, Tesch indicates her daughter started using Facebook at the age of 7.
Outlining the complex reasons the social medial platform is addicting to children, the lawsuit alleges the 13-year-old girl, referred to as "R.P.," suffered from sleep deprivation, body dysmorphia (a mental health condition causing one to focus on perceived defects or flaws in appearance), an eating disorder, self-harm, severe anxiety and depression. R.P. also exhibited a declining motivation to do school work or socialize with family or peers, according to the lawsuit.
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The suit alleges teenagers are particularly vulnerable to the perils of excess social media use. Neither Tesch nor her daughter were “aware of the clinically addicting and mental harmful effects of Facebook,” according to the lawsuit.
R.P. allegedly “developed numerous mental health conditions with which she still struggles.”
In 19 cause for action listings, the suit points to negligent design problems with the social media platform, the company’s failure to warn users, violation of unfair trade practices and intentional infliction of emotional distress as reasons the social media platform should be held accountable.
The lawsuit is seeking actual and compensatory damages to “compensate the plaintiff for injuries,” as well as medical monitoring costs, attorney fees, expert fees and cost of litigation. The case is set for a scheduling conference on Sept. 26.
The Pueblo Chieftain reached out to Hannon seeking comment from Tesch about the lawsuit, but did not receive a response by Monday's press deadline. A representative from Meta could not be reached.
Chieftain reporter Tracy Harmon covers business news. She can be reached by email at tharmon@chieftain.com or via Twitter at twitter.com/tracywumps.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Facebook sued by Pueblo mother for alleged harm to 13-year-old daughter
