Last month, two Belgian papers reported that police (real) were investigating a rape (virtual) that happened in Second Life. Which begs the question: at what point do virtual crimes become real ones? Regina Lynn over at Wired has her answer: "... the psychological upheaval of virtual rape [isn't] anywhere near the trauma of real rape. And I can't see us making virtual rape a matter for the real-life police. It's a shitty thing to do to someone. But it's not a crime."

She links to some interesting articles, notably one from Virtually Blind, on virtual law, where the question of "What is 'virtual rape?' Does it even make internal sense as a term? Is it control of an avatar against a user's will, a textual or graphical depiction of a forced sexual act, or something else completely?" is asked.

All in all, some interesting questions asked and expounded upon. What to do at the point where the virtual world and real life feelings and experiences overlap? Maggie Greene

Virtual Rape Is Traumatic, but Is It a Crime? [Wired]
Reader Roundtable: "Virtual Rape" Claim Brings Belgian Police to Second Life [Virtually Blind]