A NEW Mexico state court jury on Tuesday held Meta liable for nearly US$400 million in civil damages after a trial where the state attorney general accused the Facebook and Instagram operator of failing to safeguard kids who use its apps from child predators.
The verdict came after roughly a day of deliberations following a six-week trial in which the state accused Facebook and Instagram's parent company of failing to protect minors from sexual abuse, online solicitation, and human trafficking.
The state had sought the maximum $2.2 billion in damages, but the jury awarded a lesser amount of $375 million.
Meta denied the state of New Mexico’s allegations and previously said that it is “focused on demonstrating our longstanding commitment to supporting young people.”
The case, tried in a Santa Fe court, is among the first involving social media platforms and child safety to produce a jury verdict.
The jury reached its verdict following a trial that heard testimony from 40 witnesses, including employees-turned-whistleblowers, and reviewed hundreds of documents, reports, and emails.
New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez filed suit in 2023 against Meta — the parent company of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp — and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, alleging the company failed to protect children from online dangers.
During closing arguments, prosecutor Linda Singer told jurors that Meta's algorithms had directed adults toward content posted by teenage users while the company concealed internal findings about the risks to young people.
The jury found Meta violated the state's Unfair Practices Act by misleading consumers about the safety of its products for children.
A separate federal trial in the Northern District of California will commence later this year. Multiple school districts and parents across the nation allege that the actions and apps of Meta, YouTube, TikTok and Snap caused negative mental health-related harms to teenagers and children. – March 25, 2026
