Social media trial judge blocks Meta from introducing plaintiff’s
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The judge in the bellwether social media trial in Los Angeles barred Meta’s defense from introducing a document where the plaintiff said she had suffered “sexual abuse during childhood.”
The exchange happened after the jury and plaintiff’s witness, psychiatrist Dr. Kara Bagot, were dismissed for the day. Meta lawyer Paul Schmidt took to the lectern to ask Judge Carolyn Kuhl about an exhibit he wanted to introduce to the court.
The document was a housing application from the plaintiff, a 20-year-old female identified in court as Kaley G.M. She had filled the application out after her mom evicted her from their shared home. When asked in the application if she had suffered any “traumatic circumstances or events” in her life, she wrote: “exposure to neglect, emotional, physical and sexual abuse during childhood.”
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Meta’s lawyer, Paul Schmidt, outside the courtroom in California. (Mike Blake/Reuters)
“This happened in the family, but she wasn’t asked to elaborate,” said Schmidt to the judge. Schmidt wanted to introduce the application, which was filled out in May 2024 – after her lawsuit was filed – to show that Kaley did not list “social media addiction” as one of her traumas.
Schmidt offered to redact “sexual abuse” from the document because it hasn’t been discussed or brought up at the trial in any of her extensive medical records, which number over 200. He said that the other traumas – neglect, emotional and physical abuse – are all backed up in the previous testimonies.
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Kuhl asked to see the application and scoffed, telling Schmidt, “It looks like she’s lying here. She’s bringing up autism, she’s bringing up sexual abuse that never happened,” said Kuhl.
It has not been discussed by either the plaintiff or defense in court if Kaley experienced sexual abuse or if she had lied about experiencing sexual abuse. Autism has been discussed in her records, but she was never diagnosed with it.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg arrives at the Los Angeles Superior Court at United States Court House on Feb. 18, 2026, in Los Angeles, California. (Jill Connelly/Getty Images)
Kuhl asked if there was any evidence of sexual abuse. Schmidt said he didn’t know where Kaley got that from, as it wasn’t explored in her deposition.
“In this document, she’s exaggerating. Common logic says she’s got to find a place to go, she’s trying to convince [the housing] that she’s an abused child so they can help her,” said Kuhl. “She’s making it as ’that’ as possible.”
Schmidt disagreed with Kuhl’s take on the exhibit, saying he only wanted to bring up the traumas that she’s previously testified to.
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