New York, NY – The tragic death of 15-year-old Zackery Nazario, who died while engaging in a perilous activity known as “subway surfing,” has led his mother to file a lawsuit against the New York City Transit Authority and several social media companies.
Zackery Nazario lost his life on February 20, 2023, after he climbed onto the roof of a Brooklyn-bound J train and was struck by a beam on the Williamsburg Bridge. This fatal incident, according to his mother, Norma Nazario, was influenced by viral videos promoting the “Subway Surfing Challenge” on social media platforms, prompting her legal action.
The lawsuit targets the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) for not preventing access to dangerous areas of the subway and includes claims against ByteDance, Inc., and Meta Platforms, Inc., accusing them of promoting content that led to Zackery’s death. Both the MTA and the implicated social media companies are being held responsible for creating conditions that contributed to the tragedy.
NYC Transit President Richard Davey responded to the incident with a reminder of the inherent dangers of subway surfing, urging parents and peers to discourage this behavior to prevent future tragedies.