Meta · Facebook · Instagram · Ars Technica
Judge rules Meta caused "public nuisance" and must fund mental health treatment
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◎ Multiple-sources
A New Mexico judge yesterday ordered Meta to pay $567 million for a fund that would alleviate the “public nuisance” created by its social media services.
Key facts
- Meta reported $60.8 billion in revenue and $15.85 billion in net income in Q2 2026
- The fund ordered by Biedscheid would include $420 million for treatment, $90 million for screening and assessment, $33 million for awareness and prevention, and $24 million for other costs
- New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez sued Meta in a Santa Fe County court in 2023
- A New Mexico judge yesterday ordered Meta to pay $567 million for a fund that would alleviate the “public nuisance” created by its social media services
Summary
New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez sued Meta in a Santa Fe County court in 2023. The jury trial was phase 1 of the case involving Meta, the owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Biedscheid concluded that “Meta is a cause of and has substantially contributed to a public nuisance in New Mexico and is required to abate that public nuisance.” He said the evidence shows “New Mexico is experiencing a youth mental health crisis” with increased rates of suicide and eating disorders. The youth mental health crisis is “burdening public and community resources throughout the State,” and “overwhelmed the systems in place for addressing such harms,” he wrote.