Posted Mar 30, 2006 at 03:52PM by Andy L. Listed in: News
Ó

Alabama's Supreme Court is allowing a lawsuit filed against Sony, Take-Two, and US retailers of Grand Theft Auto to be commenced later this year or in early 2007. 18 year old Devin Moore murdered two police officers and a dispatcher in June 2003, and although he pled not guilty because of a mental defect he was convicted of the crimes and sentenced to death. Now, the victims' families are going after those responsible for creating and distributing the game because they believed it trained Moore to become a killer. While the infamous Jack Thompson withdrew from the case after being accused for violating legal ethics, there will surely be other anti-videogames lawyers to take his place. It is possible to argue that playing GTA might have given Moore ideas about going on a killing rampage, but it's hard to see how pressing the circle button equates to acquiring and firing a gun in real life. Ultimately, it'll be up to Alabama's Supreme Court to make the final decision, but you can be sure that there will be plenty of money involved in the settlement if it goes in favor of the plaintiffs.

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104 Comments


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   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » FIRST COMMENT BABY

MY SECOND FIRST COMMENT OF THE DAY NOOBS

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » >:)

1st post! i own you

   by Shamoo - 2006-03-30
 » Lol?

Cops got murdered all the time before GTA came out. Why do people find this surprizing and then have the right to sue?

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » not again

im tired of hearing people blaming movies and video games for another persons own mental problems who probably needed some good attention from friends and family around them

   by boundless - 2006-03-30
 » not again...

Wow... people am smart. Seriously, when will people take responsibility for their actions? Maybe his parents never paid attention to him or something... but I guess the victims' families wouldn't get them involved when its just easier to go after Rockstar.

Why take money from an average family when you can take from a successful company? People suck.

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » Wow...

This is the kind of stuff that pisses me off. I mean, first of all, it's a VIDEO game, in no way at all could it prepare someone mentally or physically to go on a killing rampage. Second, I don't see how people keep attacking media for acts of violence. If someone can't handle playing a game like this, they shouldn't ruin it for everyone else with a stable mind. And third, this guy was 18 years old, what he does is his own fault. PRetty soon they're going to start banning mature movies and TV shows, because a VERY small majority can't distinguish between fantasy and reality.

The way I see it, if you do something haynous like this, then you were *****ed up to begin with, the games didn't provoke ANYTHING other than to give you ideas on HOW to carry out the violence.

~ZFB8

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » HAHAHA

SOEMGUY THOUGHT HE DID THE FIRST COMMENT BUT I WAS THE ONE WHO REALLY DID LOL

   by whitelightnig - 2006-03-30
 » Come the F*ck on

What the hell has America come to? Taking game developers to court just because you can kill a cop in them? Just because some f*kin kid claimed that the games made him go crazy? Jesus christ! Next your guna tell me ESRB was sued because the rated a game "E" instead of "E 10+"

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   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » Parents?

It's odd how Rockstar, Sony and Take Two are being targetted and yet for some reason The Beatles were never sued when Charles Manson said that the song Helter Skelter drove him to kill all those people. AHEM! *****TARDS! If anyone should be sued it should be his family for not playing attention to him. How do you not notice someone, who is apparently mentally unstable to begin with getting into the state of mind to kill someone. This is a very, very sad day for parents with children with mental disabilities. It really puts a taint on them when many of them try so hard for their kids.

   by THOR - 2006-03-30
 » Video games

in my opininon video game vilence dose not make killers
it makes killers more unique

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » STOP BLAMING THESE THINGS ON VIDEO GAMES!!!!!

Pushing buttons on a little game controller have absolutely nothing to do with shooting cops in real life! I'm tired of people using video games as an excuse to make money off of something that isn't even true! Video games DON'T cause people to shoot cops; they were most likely weird like that since they were born, not because pixels and polygons on a screen made them that way! VIDEO GAMES ARE FOR WHEN YOU'RE BORED AND HAVE NOTHING BETTER TO DO - NOT TO "TRAIN YOU" HOW TO COMITT GRAND THEFT AUTO, IT'S JUST TO MAKE YOU FEEL COOL AFTER A LONG DAY OF GETTING BEAT UP AT SCHOOL!

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » Im an *****!

JEJE

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » lol

lol ^^^^ he is right , they are gonna sue atari fro putting one of their dbz games early childhood insted of E7+ lol , anyways I like to seee atari sued and any company who makes dbz games , I hate dbz , the people who like dbz has the mind of people of early childhood , ohh and if you are a dbzfanboy don't bother writing hate mails to me cause I don't care if you think this is discriminating , I discriminate aganst the peopleI want , that means dbz freaks , pokemon freaks and yugio freaks just cause they suck their....... thumbs , anyways this is just crap that the government is making ( paying mr.crazy parents to sues rockstar ) and I know why the government hates videogame companies , because if videogame company grows , the realism grows , if war games with too much realism go ( or shooter games ) less idiots I mean people join the army , you know what I'll say idiots because people who join the army are morons and assasins.

   by tinglemaps - 2006-03-30
 » Free speech...

He's 18, he's an adult, and if he was found guilty then he is. this is so lame.

in america we can make things like GTA because it's the land of the free... don't take that freedom away. if you don't want to play it, then don't buy it (i don't want to play it, which is why i don't have it... though I would like it's hacking abilities)
there's a lot stuff out there that would be a better teacher of how to be a murderer than GTA.

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » BS

Thats gay, people need to take responibilty for them selves, not find other people to blame, shame on u

   by THOR - 2006-03-30
 » and.....

gess who bught him the game in the first place if u dont want ur child playing the video game dont buy it for them duh

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » Parents?

It's odd how Rockstar, Sony and Take Two are being targetted and yet for some reason The Beatles were never sued when Charles Manson said that the song Helter Skelter drove him to kill all those people. AHEM! *****TARDS! If anyone should be sued it should be his family for not playing attention to him. How do you not notice someone, who is apparently mentally unstable to begin with getting into the state of mind to kill someone. This is a very, very sad day for parents with children with mental disabilities. It really puts a taint on them when many of them try so hard for their kids.

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   by vans1170 - 2006-03-30
 » OH NO!

OH NO, ITS NOT A PARENTING PROBLEM.

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » microsoft

hmm wonder why microsoft wont be sued.... they released the game too....

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » microsoft

hmm wonder why microsoft wont be sued.... they released the game too....

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30

Space Invaders made me kill aliens :(

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » who is right or wrong


i think he was just trying to blame someone esle for his actions. im a parent of a 12yrs old boy and he loves to play the game but i teach him what is right and wrong its just a game. i think his parents should of teach him better and let him know its just a game im sorry for thier lost but no one deserve to die . i think thier parents is wrong for sueing the company.

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » who is right or wrong


i think he was just trying to blame someone esle for his actions. im a parent of a 12yrs old boy and he loves to play the game but i teach him what is right and wrong its just a game. i think his parents should of teach him better and let him know its just a game im sorry for thier lost but no one deserve to die . i think thier parents is wrong for sueing the company.

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » Do a little research...

Since you are all wasting your time getting upset and making stupid cliche comments why dont you do a slice of research on the subject of the effects videogames have on people. If you do I gurantee you'll find some information in support of the parent's claims. Don't take my word for it, go look for yourself. Anyway, logically a case like this could not have been given the go ahead if there were no ground on which it could stand. Now, I may not agree with the parent's claim but I do know that from my minor in psychology and my thesis paper in philosophy concerning this very subject that there is enough evidence that it is reasonable to say that the parents are correct in their claim. The problem I have is that it would be hard to associate the kids killing spree with GTA specifically when there are so many violent videogames out there.

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » Laughing my *****ing ass off.

I AM GOING TO KILL SOME ONE

IF I FIND THE PARENTS AND THAT *****ER WHO IS SUING I AM GOING TO SLIT ALL OF THAIR *****ING NECKS I AM FING TIRED OR RANDOM PARENTS SAYING THAT VIDEO GAMES ARE VIOLENT. WHO ARE THE PARENTS WHO SAY THIS BECAUSE I WANT TO KILL THEM. SERIOUSLY MY DAD LETS ME PLAY RATED A GAMES AND HE DOES NOT GIVE A *****. AND DONT GET ME WRONG I AM 16 YEARS OLD AND I MAKE GOOD GRADES, I HAVE GOOD PARENTS. BUT NOT ONES THAT HANG ON TO MY NUTS WHILE I AM TAKING A PISS.

SO PLZ IF YOU SEE A PARENT LIKE THIS PLZ TELL ME WHERE THEY LIVE

I WANT TO KILL THE PARENTS

SERIOUSLY I AM GETTING TIRED OF *****ING PARENTS COMPLAINING ABOUT A *****ING VIDEO GAME. AND WEAK MINDED KIDS. ''OOOO THEY ARE SHOOTING IN THE GAME SO I GUESS ILL GET A GUN AND SHOOT EVERY ONE OOOOOO''. *****ING SONS OF *****ES ILL KILL THAT ***** FOR EVEN GOING ON TRILE ON ROCKSTAR. I HOPE THEY LOSE THEN I CAN SLIT THAIR *****ING NECKS. AND ANY WAY IF HE IS MIND DISABLED WHERE THE ***** DID HE EVEN GET A GUN. WOW GOOD PARENTS. JEEZ I HATE THIS. THEY ARE JUST TRYING TO BACK UP THAIR STUPID ***** SON WHO SOULD NOT BE SENTANCED TO DEATH, BUT TO A MAXIMUM PRISON FACILITY WHERE HE WILL RECIVE HIS *****ING DAILY RAPE IN THE SHOWER ROOM LIKE HE DISERVES IT. IF HE *****S ROCKSTAR GAMES IN THE ASS WE WILL TOO. I OUTTA SHOOT HIM MY SELF. I LOVE RAMPAGE GAMES AND YOU DONT SEE ME TAKING A PISTOL AND SHOOTING EVERY ONE IN THE *****ING SCHOOL. JESUS *****ING CRIST PLZ WASTE THAT MENTALY RETARDED *****ER GOOD ON THE ELECTRIC CHAIR.

My God, it's people like you who make poeple wanna ban video games in the first place. You're such *****ing hypocrites, it's hilarious. In the SAME EXACT sentence that you say that poeple are dumb for committing violent acts like this, you say you are going to KILL the parents who act like this, and you have horrible grammar and spelling to boot. I think that if banning these games got rid of people like you, it might just be worth it =D

~ZFB8


   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » jesus christ

Im thinking of sueing DC shoes. One day I tripped over my shoe laces. I feel that If i havent of bought the shoes I would of been fine.

Dont blame peoples mental issues on games/movies etc. Retards get tried as retards and therefore dont go to prison because they are *****Ked Not the game developers.

Everybody loves GTA so its like 1000million to 1. If 1000million people start killing then sommit is wrong

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » punch rail, high five ZFB8

Someone please punch "rail" in the face and if possible give ZFB8 a high five for being awsome.

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   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » really?

that's why most people in the world hates america... it's the stupidity country!

   by Anonymous Coward (Unregistered) - 2006-03-30
 » Pardon my cowardice,

Perhaps we can save money training our military by just putting them all on violent video games. I'll feel real safe if the U.S. Navy S.E.A.L. teams just play a lot of SOCOM. What a joke.

I was allowed to play violent games and watch violent movies as a child. I had been taught how to shoot a handgun, that games and movies are fake, and that the gun I was shooting was very real. The first time I pulled a gun on another man was at 13 yrs. old (crackhead broke in while I was home alone), well after I started playing video games. Thankfully, I didn't have to pull the trigger. If I hadn't been taught BY MY PARENTS/FAMILY I may have shot the guy or myself.

This kid is a moron and so are his parents. Hey, Mr. & Mrs. Moron, have you ever heard of parenting? Oh well, it is unfortunate that ignorant parents likely leads to ignorant offsprring.

Lock the whole stupid bunch up and throw away the key. They should spend the rest of their lives working to pay for their incarceration and the families of the officers.

A.J.

   by comedy - 2006-03-30
 » caps lock

you don't need to type in capitals, we won't read your comments if you just leave caps lock on all the time.

this subject needs to be studied properly, why can't a well devised study be made into whether or not videogames will push an unstable person over the edge.

don't get so angry at us either, if you want to shout about it shout where people who you're shouting at don't feel the same... can someone please post an intelligent comment, such as the guy who studied the pschology of this 'phenomenon'.



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