Games blamed in British nurse's murder
Manunt mooted in Harling murder
The mother of an 18 year-old man convicted of stabbing to death nurse Cheryl Moss has blamed the influence of violent videogames upon her son - according to an interview published in The News of World.
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"I knew he was playing the videogames but we didn't really know what went on in them, how brutal and graphic they were," Lorraine Harling told the tabloid newspaper. "Stuart was 11 or 12 when I bought him the PlayStation. For a long time I didn't even realise games had age limits on them. We'd just buy him the game that all the other kids had. I didn't really know what they were about. I think most parents are the same."
Stuart Harling received a life sentence for stabbing nurse Moss 72 times - the newspaper affirming that he carried out the killing having practiced on his bedroom PlayStation. "Every night he would retreat into his darkened bedroom at home in Rainham, Essex, and enter a grisly virtual world that revelled in sadism, ritual blood-letting and death. Just like millions of other youngsters," the article affirms.
Manhunt is mentioned by name in the piece, alongside a grisly list of the weapons included in the 18-rated title. Mrs Harling uses the article to call for a ban on violent games, if they can trigger such violent episodes as Stuart Harling's unprovoked attack.
More soon.
Comments
Not that I'm convinced about the link between on screen violence and real life when you hear parents abdicating all responsibility for their kids actions by saying things like...
"For a long time I didn't even realise games had age limits on them. We'd just buy him the game that all the other kids had. I didn't really know what they were about. I think most parents are the same"
You have to wonder about what they think being a parent is actually all about.... So you’d have gone out and bought him Hostel or something if he’d said a kid at school had it….????
Grrrr……
"Every night he would retreat into his darkened bedroom at home in Rainham, Essex, and enter a grisly virtual world that revelled in sadism, ritual blood-letting and death. Just like millions of other youngsters,"
So I suppose that means there's millions of other murderers waiting to be caught out there?
Obviously this guy had deep troubles anyway and blaming it on games doesn't get you anywhere.
I assume the admission of having the game for her under 18 son will lead to the prosecution of someone, either a parent or the shop which sold the game to a minor.
"Stuart was 11 or 12 when I bought him the PlayStation. For a long time I didn't even realise games had age limits on them. We'd just buy him the game that all the other kids had."
Says it all really. One in a million may be influenced by games.
You can't blame video games just, what about the tv, what about movies, what about the way you raised him, what about his school life, what about his friends, what if he had any mental problems.. there could be dozens of things affecting it.. My word is, if you have mental problems and have a sick fantasy then there is something wrong and video games shouldn't be allowed to play because he might have problems differing reality to video games. I bet she haven't even tried to play the games and know how it is, its like putting a child who never been outside in front of a tv and put on a violent movie and that child will start seeing the world from eyes of a movie...
look for the cause not the symptoms. no one becomes insane because of video games.
video games are merely a way to entertain yourself, much like television or a good book. and this is just the blame the newest media for problems wich have existed since the dawn of time. frankly im getting tired of listening to people trying to put blame where its convenient for them.
just my 2cent rant.
What a stupid parent. I've played violent games all my life, I've watched horror movies all my life, I don't go around trying to reenact them. Besides that...maybe she shouldn't have simply bought the games without looking, I mean really...how stupid can these people be?
kill away all video games no one should be killed over a violent video game. i am a child who plays games but not violent ones i think they should be banned from any country until they make them safer they are unsuitable for teens aged under 21 i think they should be gotten rid of.
kill away all video games no one should be killed over a violent video game. i am a child who plays games but not violent ones i think they should be banned from any country until they make them safer they are unsuitable for teens aged under 21 i think they should be gotten rid of.
i work 4 a paper not the news of the world! I know what was said the papers made it look like the parents of that boy said all that stuff about the video games. Where indeed it was the papers to get a story.