How many times have we read a story about a murder or other crime out there that is blamed on the alledged criminal playing video games? From Doom to Mortal Kombat to the Grand Theft Auto titles, people and attorneys love that kind of blame game. In the real world we know crimes are committed for a ton of other real reasons but a attorney (not Jack Thompson) says that the 'blame games" defense can actually work in court.

In a story for the Palm Beach Post web site, llinois attorney James H. Waller states, "While I don't believe that violent video games tend to have any negative effects on otherwise healthy people, my job is to present ANY theory to a jury that would explain why my client did the things he did." He says placing blame on outside forces, including the playing of violent games, "humanizes the client and shifts the culpability." The defense works, he claims, mainly on "an unsophisticated, typically older, somewhat more rural jury pool or judge."

However, game publishers have to take a little responsiblity, according to Waller. "The manufacturers do everything they can to make sure that they are a household name, if not cartridge. Restricting supply to create buzz, sensationalizing their own violence to the media, doing idiotic things like leaving the "Hot Coffee" code in the game...the jury knows that a lot of kids today are playing this Grand Theft Auto game and that it's very violent or adult before we even walk into the courtroom."