In his closing arguments during a trial for the murder of 17-month old Alayiah Truman, Assistant District Attorney, James Berardinelli, alleged that Tyrone Spellman beats his daughter to death after she knocked over his Xbox 360. Spellman was said to have played up to six hours a day: "[Spellman's] entire life and daily routine is about playing [Ghost Recon]...What do you think someone with that kind of obsession is going to do when it gets knocked over?...The skull fractures on that baby are what happened." Whoa!
Kotaku Coverage
Philly Inquirer Coverage
Spellman confessed to hitting his daughter in the face twice, and throwing her against a chair, but claimed that he never meant to kill her. His confession came after being held for nearly 24 hours in detention, and the defense claims that the confession was coerced in an attempt to protect the girl's mother, Mia Truman. Will game obsession be seen as powerful enough to provide motive for murder? I want to look into this further...
2/1/08: Spellman was convicted of 3rd degree murder.
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"What do you think someone with that kind of obsession is going to do when it gets knocked over?"
I'm afraid that doesn't hold water. It's offensive in the extreme. Whether or not video game obsession should be a recognised condition, I just don't know, I'm not a medical professional. What I do know is that if you're capable of punching your child in the face and throwing her against a chair, there's something horribly, horribly wrong with you and you shouldn't be allowed near children. Child protection is one of the most important things in society and it shouldn't be compromised on. Not ever.
Perhaps he didn't intend to kill her. I simply don't know and awful as it sounds, I don't care. He did kill her and he certainly intended to hurt her. Over an XBox.
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