The parents of Suchir Balaji, the former OpenAI employee who exposed alleged copyright violations by the AI company, have filed a lawsuit against San Francisco officials for access to police records related to his death. The legal action, filed Friday, challenges what the family describes as the “illegal withholding” of public records that could provide more clarity about Balaji’s passing.

According to The Mercury News, Balaji’s body was discovered on Nov. 26 in his Lower Haight apartment, with the San Francisco Medical Examiner’s Office initially ruling his death a suicide. However, his parents question the circumstances and claim police have refused to release key investigative documents despite their repeated requests.

Balaji gained national attention in October 2024 after alleging that OpenAI violated federal copyright laws by scraping vast amounts of online content to train ChatGPT. His claims surfaced shortly before The New York Times named him as a potential witness in its lawsuit against OpenAI and its business partner, Microsoft, over alleged intellectual property theft.

The lawsuit filed by Balaji’s parents cites a separate autopsy, commissioned by the family, which confirmed a self-inflicted gunshot wound but noted that the bullet trajectory was “atypical and uncommon in suicides.” Despite this, San Francisco police maintain that there is no evidence of foul play and have turned the case over to the medical examiner.

Balaji’s death has sparked widespread speculation, drawing attention from figures such as Elon Musk and Tucker Carlson, while Congressman Ro Khanna has called for a “full and transparent investigation.” However, media ethics experts warn that rampant speculation has fueled conspiracy theories with no factual basis, as described by East Bay Times.

The lawsuit seeks to compel San Francisco police to release documents related to the investigation, arguing that officials cannot justify withholding public records while also asserting that the case is already closed.

The San Francisco Medical Examiner’s Office has yet to complete its final autopsy report as toxicology results remain pending. Meanwhile, Balaji’s parents continue their legal fight for transparency regarding their son’s death.

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