Three men attending Shinboku-con 2011 in Westlake, Ohio this weekend ended their attendance to the three-day anime/video game/culture event by going to jail. Police arrested two attendees of the anime and video game conference at about 7:15 p.m. on April 30. The two men, a 27-year-old Cleveland resident and a 21-year-old Canal Fulton man, got into an argument over how the younger gentleman was playing an undisclosed video game. The younger man was so agitated by the critique that he punched the other man in the mouth an hour after the initial argument. Police arrested the younger man for assault. The older man, proving just how stupid he is, decided to spit on an officer. Both men were released later that evening.

To quote a poignant line from Ground Hog Day, "don't drive angry!" But that is exactly what video game players do. A new study by  UK-based tire manufacturer Continental Tyres found that people who spend time playing driving games are more dangerous when behind the wheel of a motor vehicle.

The study cited Gran Turismo and Grand Theft Auto as two games that had a particularly bad influence on players. In other words, they took the virtual driving skills out into the real world. The study asked 2,000 motorists (half gamers, half non-gamers) between the ages of 17 and 39 on their driving habits. Though gamers believe they are more skilled than the average driver, many also say they take higher risks and making more claims on their insurance as a result.

"Gamers take more risks than non-gamers, possibly due to the lack of real consequences in the game," said Tim Bailey, safety expert at Continental Tyres.

Testimony in a Wichita, Kansas murder case that revolves around Madden NFL 2010 began this week in Wichita Kansas. A judge began hearing the events that lead to the death of one man at the hands of two brothers after an argument over cheating in the video game.

While playing Madden NFL 2010, 22-year-old Luke German was accused of cheating by two brothers - 26-year-old Christopher Redgate and 22-year-old Benjamin Redgate. The argument escalated, prosecutors say, into an assault with a metal pipe that lead to German's death. The brothers face second-degree murder charges for the crime. A medical examiner determined that German died of multiple blunt-force trauma injuries and strangulation.

A judge began hearing testimony about the October fight in a preliminary hearing for Christopher Redgate. His brother waived his right to a preliminary hearing in the Sedgwick County District Court.

An episode recap of the MTV's 16 and Pregnant reality show entitled "There's Nothing Wrong with Video Games" follows the trials and travails of teen parents Megan and Nathan. Nathan seems to be more preoccupied with lip rings and dungeon dwelling than being a father, while Megan hasn't grown up enough to give up rainbows and ponies.. There is also a lot of talk about a lack of tough love, but who cares? Let's get to the video game references:

A UK journalist attempting to write a story on videogames in 2006 sent out an “informal” email to a string of fellow journalists, civil servants and MPs requesting some feedback on what types of games they played, and failed to receive a single response.

National Videogame Archive co-founder Iain Simons was penning an article for The New Statesmen at the time, and, as detailed in GamesIndustry.biz, took the non-replies to indicate that “to be identified as a gamer (in 2006, at least) was incompatible with being a 'serious' civil servant or member of the Westminster set - be that journalist, MP or whatever."

After sending a second email offering anonymity, Simons stated that, “…this time lots of them got back in touch and came 'out' as gamers."

Simons added:

Unlocked! What do you do when you are playing videogames and your girlfriend's son rudely slams the door on you? Threaten him with a weapon.

What do you do if your boyfriend is being hauled away by the cops on Father's Day for threatening your son with said weapon? Spit in the face of the police officers, be combative and go with your boyfriend to jail.

This is just what happened when Vernon Connecticut police showed up in response to a 911 call. Here's more from an AP story:

With all the reports of terrorism in New York City this week, it is probably not a good idea to place something that looks like a bomb in a school, but that's just what 18-year-old Pensacola High School student Lars O'Mara did. His motive? To gain popularity by getting fellow students out of class for the day. But instead of a trip to the mall this student is spending some leisure time at the local jail and facing a felony charge.

According to Kotaku, a fellow student alerted authorities Monday morning after spotting a device taped beneath a sink. That device, cobbled together to look like a bomb, turned out to be a cell phone, a Nintendo Game Boy and some "protruding wires."

The South Korean parents of a three-month old allegedly fed their gaming habits obsessively while neglecting their daughter, who effectively starved to death.

The 41-yeard old husband and his 25-year old wife, identified only as “the Kims,” spent up to 12 hours every night at Internet cafés playing games, according to a story on ABC. The couple came home one morning last September, after spending the whole night out, and alerted authorities upon finding their daughter deceased.

An autopsy revealed that the baby’s death came about from malnourishment. The Kims subsequently confessed that they had been feeding their daughter “rotten, powdered milk and had often spanked their crying baby.”

In a sinister bit of irony, officials reported that instead of taking care of their real child, who was born prematurely, the couple was infatuated with raising a virtual daughter in the massively multiplayer online game PRIUS.

The article also features a quote from Dr. Kim Sang Eun, of Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, who believes game addiction is a brain disease. She stated, “there's no certain clinical indicator to define 'game addiction' but our study shows that brain PET [scan] images of suspected online game addicts are very similar to that of a cocaine addict.”

The parents were arrested on Wednesday.

Remember those Florida cops caught playing Wii Bowling following a drug raid?

Disciplinary measures for those who took part in the gaming party have been revealed and they are rather lenient. The Ledger reports that, following an investigation by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, 11 members of the task force in all were found to be at fault.

Undercover detectives who were on the scene received a letter of retraining and will undergo two hours of retraining, while supervising sergeants earned a letter of guidance and were sentenced to four hours of retraining.

Sheriff’s Chief of Staff Gary Hester said, “We are learning from our mistakes. I'm absolutely convinced these folks will never do that again. I think we handled (the investigation) appropriately. We told them we were disappointed in what they did.”

The actual incident took place way back in March of this year, but was not brought to the public eye until September, when a local TV station obtained the footage captured by surveillance cameras.


Thanks Andrew

Playing Wii Sports in a suspected drug house following a raid is probably not the best way for police officers to ingratiate themselves with their superiors, especially if the house, as part of the investigation, was previously wired with a video camera.

The Associated Press reports that police in a Polk County, Florida were caught doing exactly that however, with one participant “furiously jumping up and down in celebration” while playing Wii Bowling. Another detective was also witnessed taking “several breaks” from cataloging evidence in order to bowl a few frames.

Some of the officers “could be disciplined.”

Is this better or worse than playing Solitaire while in session?