A Florida teen’s family filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court suing the dating app Grindr, which essentially caters to gay folks. It’s a hookup and dating app for people who wish to maintain anonymity and still meet people with the same orientation. The family of Miranda Corsette has accused the app of nine counts.
This includes the kidnapping and murder of their daughter by people using the app. According to their accusations, the app led to her sex trafficking, emotional distress, wrongful death and negligence. D.W., the plaintiff in the case, has said the app is responsible for connecting her to Stever Gress. He is a 35-year-old man who was a predator towards the 16-year-old; as per the Corsette family, she was tortured and killed by the man and his girlfriend.
Gress used Grindr to meet Corsette and ended up killing her with the help of his girlfriend. They have been charged with kidnapping and first-degree murder; however, they have pleaded not guilty to the accusations. Gress and his girlfriend, Michelle Brandes, are set to appear in court on July 8.
Although they have denied all allegations, the court documents say that they dismembered the victim’s body and threw it into the dumpster. The two had lured her into their home on Feb 14 but got into an argument. They repeatedly beat her up and tortured her. She was in their captivity for a week and was suffocated till she died by the end of the week.
Family of Miranda Corsette 16, allegedly tortured & murdered by Steven Gress 35 she met on Grindr sues app. Lured to meet him on Feb 14, charged with first-degree murder. Michelle Brandes allegedly put a billiard ball into teen’s mouth, wrapped head in plastic, suffocating her.😖 pic.twitter.com/T0y4vwC8QI
— Sumner (@renmusb1) June 6, 2025
For the torture inflicted and death, the two cabs face the death penalty. Apart from this, the lawsuit on the app is for $150 million in compensatory damages and up to $600 million in punitive damages. Other than this, the family has asked the app to make changes such as age verification.
The app’s current rules allow users’ coordinates to be visible to everyone. Moreover, they have an unverified process for sign ups so anyone can do that without any verification. The app also promoted relationships with age gaps and anonymity. The age reporting on the app is not exclusively verified so anyone can lie about their age. so it attracts minors to get into it and older people to take advantage of them.
Moreover the app is often used by sketchy people who want to maintain confidentiality. It does not even verify gender, age, orientation and username so it makes it easier for people to catfish others. There’s also an accusation on the app for not using new technology to verify they are using facial data.
16 years old Miranda Corsette was tortured and killed by a predator and his girlfriend then her body was sadly dismembered. These animals are on the internet lurking 👀 please beware pic.twitter.com/KmBJpkjTRV
— Brooklyn Squad (@brooklyn90347) April 4, 2025
So, it cannot detect the minor’s age. There is a lack of protection for minors from the predators on the app, as seen in this vase. In another case, a man was lured to the app when he was still a minor. Even the app’s logo promotes deceit by using a mask over the background.
The family holds the app responsible for such mental and emotional distress. They have accused the app of being reckless when it comes to user safety, especially for minors. The platform invites adult predators to hunt down minor children, leading to such heinous crimes.
