- A Nashville teen survivor sued AI gun detection maker Omnilert for system failure in 2025 shooting
- The Antioch High School shooting left two dead, including the 17-year-old gunman Solomon Henderson
- Omnilert's system had known detection limits related to camera placement and lighting, lawsuit states
A teenager who survived a January 2025 school shooting in Nashville, Tennessee, has filed a lawsuit against the manufacturer of an AI gun detection system. The lawsuit claims the technology failed to flag the handgun used in the attack. The shooting, which took place in the Antioch High School cafeteria, left two dead, including a 16-year-old girl and the 17-year-old gunman, Solomon Henderson.
The Metropolitan Nashville Public Schools (MNPS) Board in 2023 approved a contract worth $1 million to install AI detection software on top of its network of cameras and related security infrastructure to catch the shooters.
According to the lawsuit, which was filed in Davidson County court last month, the security company Omnilert either knew or should have known that there were "significant operational limitations in its gun detection system that could result in detection failures".
"Omnilert knew, or reasonably should have known, of significant operational limitations in its gun detection system that could result in detection failures during actual emergencies, including limitations based on camera placement, proximity of the weapon to camera sensors, camera angle, lighting, and weapon visibility," the lawsuit stated.
The suit added that Omnilert made modifications to its website after the Nashville incident, highlighting the significant blind spots of the system.
"Omnilert's own post-shooting revisions to its commercial website, adding for the first time disclosures that the system is subject to "falsealerts" and that human verification is designed to "reduce false alerts"- confirm that Omnilert possessed knowledge of these limitations at the time of sale and deployment."
Chris Smith, one of the attorneys representing the teen, told ArcTechnica that he was sceptical when he first heard about the concept of AI gun detection.
"I just thought that it was kind of bullshit. I have a Tesla, and I think Tesla's self-driving is bullshit," he said. "It's not ready for prime time! How could you possibly be entrusting of that? That's your plan to protect kids from school shootings? Why is this any better than a metal detector?"
US School Shootings
Last Wednesday, an 18-year-old was killed and three others were wounded after a high school graduation ceremony in California's Bay Area. The gunfire erupted after the ceremony for Sem Yeto High School, which started at 6 pm local time. Police have not publicly identified the mass shooting victims "pending next-of-kin notification and to protect the integrity of the ongoing investigation".
"Three victims, ages 11, 20, and 25, sustained non-fatal gunshot injuries. A fourth victim, an 18-year-old, succumbed to their injuries," said Fairfield Police Officer Michelle Belyea.
According to the Gun Violence Archive, at least 168 mass shootings have taken place in the US this year alone.
