Lacey v. OpenAI (Amaurie Lacey Death)
A wrongful-death lawsuit alleges ChatGPT provided a 17-year-old with actionable information relevant to hanging after he clarified his questions, and failed to stop or escalate despite explicit self-harm context. The teen died by suicide in June 2025.
AI System
ChatGPT
OpenAI, Inc.
Occurred
June 2, 2025
Reported
November 6, 2025
Jurisdiction
US-GA
Platform
assistant
What Happened
According to the complaint, Amaurie's family believed ChatGPT was safe for students and were unaware of his mental health struggles; the suit alleges ChatGPT was the only 'entity' that knew the extent of his distress.
The complaint describes the teen asking how to tie a 'noose' and, after initial hesitation, reframing the question; it alleges ChatGPT then provided step-by-step knot guidance and later answered questions explicitly framed as 'hanging.'
The suit alleges the system did not terminate the conversation or ensure effective crisis intervention.
AI Behaviors Exhibited
Alleged response that supplied actionable information after user re-framed intent; failure to hard-refuse/terminate; continued engagement during crisis
How Harm Occurred
Method provision + barrier erosion during suicidal ideation; lack of effective crisis escalation
Outcome
OngoingComplaint filed November 6, 2025 in California state court; seeks damages and product safeguards.
Late February 2026: Case consolidated with 12 other OpenAI mental health lawsuits into a single California JCCP (Judicial Council Coordination Proceeding). A coordination judge is being assigned.
Harm Categories
Contributing Factors
Victim
Amaurie Lacey, 17-year-old male, Georgia
Cite This Incident
APA
NOPE. (2025). Lacey v. OpenAI (Amaurie Lacey Death). AI Harm Tracker. https://nope.net/incidents/2025-lacey-v-openai
BibTeX
@misc{2025_lacey_v_openai,
title = {Lacey v. OpenAI (Amaurie Lacey Death)},
author = {NOPE},
year = {2025},
howpublished = {AI Harm Tracker},
url = {https://nope.net/incidents/2025-lacey-v-openai}
} Related Incidents
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