Friday, July 16, 2004

Violent-game ban deemed unconstitutional

It seems like at least the courts in the US are sensible enough at deciding where to draw the line when it comes to the call for the ban on violent games.
US District Court of Seattle rules that a state law forbidding the sale of games showing violence against law enforcement officers violates the First Ammendent.
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Rejecting the state's argument that violence in games should fall under the state's obscenity law, Judge Lasnik noted that similar portrayals of violence can be seen in literature, art, and the media and that "there is no indication that such expressions have ever been excluded from the protections of the First Amendment."
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Addressing the state's concern that violence against police officers in games translates to violence in real life, Judge Lasnik determined that "the...belief that video games cause violence, particularly violence against law enforcement officers, is not based on reasonable inferences drawn from substantial evidence." He also pointed out that the definition of violence against law enforcement officers was impossibly vague, citing such examples as the possessed cops in Freedom Force, enemy officers in Splinter Cell, or games built around Looney Toons, The Simpsons, or The Dukes of Hazzard.

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