While the mods are nothing new (they're for the ageing San Andreas, first released on PC in 2005), the Police in question seem to have only just gotten around to noticing. And noticing that their cars (and in some cases officers) are being replicated for use in video game killing sprees.

Don Gotthardt, from the Fairfax County Police Department, says "The Fairfax County Police Department finds the videos in very poor taste. One of the reasons we find it in poor taste is because of the way the officers are depicted."

Fairfax County cops have contacted YouTube and requested that videos showcasing the mods be removed.

Grand Theft Police Logos [NBC, via GamePolitics]

Video games can have a negative impact on young drivers because it increases their complacency and their indulgence in risk-taking behaviour. In games you race, you crash and it is a matter of pressing the buttons and off you go again. In real life it doesn't work that way, you can be killed.

Do any of you kids really think that real life driving comes with Gran Turismo crash modelling?

Video games kill driving skills, police say [Daily Telegraph]

New York's powerful police unions say that a violent new video game called "Saints Row 2" is an abomination. In the game, the player controls a gang member who can steal, do drugs and kill as many characters as possible, including police officers.

Yesterday Manhattan District Attorney candidate Leslie Crocker-Snyder spoke out against the game, which I am positive she has never touched, but I am sure the police unions appreciated it and will put in a good word for her when voting comes around. I sigh.

New York Police Union Wants Video Game Pulled from Shelves [WPEC News 12 Now]

This case is kinda funny because a PS3 gamer, who says he's "just not had luck with Xbox consoles," ends up with a 360 essentially by police action. But it's fascinating for the police work involved. The Statesville police had been investigating a string of burglaries and this PS3 was among the property stolen. Find the seller and they can unravel the rest of it, of course. So they were watching for that PSN ID to log on, and when Waller went looking for some PSN games, the detectives tracked his IP address, and then got a search warrant to get records from his ISP.

Waller is not the suspect, the guy who sold it to the mall retailer is. Originally Waller went back to ask for a refund and was told that was against store policy, and left empty-handed. The store later gave him a 360, which Waller thinks was done at the prodding of the Statesville cops. But in terms of actual value of the two consoles, Waller estimates he's down $150. Plus he was just getting the hang of the SixAxis (kidding).

Anyway, Waller took the story public because he wanted the retailer to take some responsibility for checking out those who sell it used items. And it's useful advice for you folks too. If you notice anything fishy about a refurb you bought, get on the phone with the seller and/or the po-po, before they get a warrant and come to you first. Because they are total Microsoft fanboys.

Game Over: Used Playstation Turns Out to Be Stolen

[The Salisbury (N.C.) Post]

Jerone Hunter and Troy Victorino were both sentenced to death by electric chair or lethal injection in 2006, the third man received a life sentence without parole.

Hunter's attorney argued earlier this week that his client should be spared from execution because he was acting under the "domination" of Victorino, that he had no prior criminal record and suffers from schizophrenia.

The supreme court will make their decision at a later date, but I'd like to think that this is just the last desperate attempt of a vicious killer to escape his just punishment and that the court will be quick in crushing this man's last hopes.

For those of you who don't recall the case, Victorino was angry because one of the victims took his Xbox and clothing from her grandparents vacant home, where he had been squatting, so he crept into her home and bludgeoned her and five others to death with baseball bats as they lay sleeping in bed.

Supreme Court hears death sentence appeal in Xbox slayings [AP]

Now, you stick a camera on a cop and ask him about drunk driving, real or virtual, and what the hell do you think he's gonna say? WSAV-TV does just that and the results are predictable.

But I'm going to try to see the good here.

This is from Lt. Scott Simpkins, a traffic commander in Savannah's police department.

"Some people are going to say it can be used as an education as well as a game, this is just a game, you know you have to pick and choose your battles. Well, I'm here to tell you, Scott Simpkins as a father, I'm picking and choosing this battle," said Simpkins [who has two sons, 10 and 12 years old]

And to its credit, the station went to online forums for gamer comment:

One says: "to anyone who hasn't driven drunk, it exaggerates the effects to a degree that i'm sure would scare someone from ever trying to really drive drunk, so it's actually helping their cause."

"Immediately, I think well good, that's the kind of response I'd hope to see, but I think that's going to be a small number," says Simpkins.

Why is it valid to assume that all bad acts realistically portrayed in a game will be imitated in the real world, but it's out of the realm of possibility that those same bad acts cannot also deliver a deterrent message?

Latest Version of Violent Video Game Lets Players Drive Drunk [KSAV-TV Savannah, Ga. via GamePolitics]

Captain Tim Guerrette of the Collier County, Florida Sheriff's Office, apparently referred extensively to video games and their influence during a conference, where Daily News reporter Victoria Macchi was in attendance. In her article, she refers to what Guerrette said, but also notes some of her own research:

An American Sociological Association report released in early 2007, however, dismissed the link between video game violence and homicidal behavior in children as unfounded.

Moreover, the report claimed that in the decade following the 1993 release of the first-person shooter game Doom — which Guerrette mentioned several times on Tuesday evening as a possible trigger of youth violence — juvenile arrest rates actually went down by 77 percent.

Police Official Blames Games, Reporter Calls Him On It [GamePolitics.com]

"I am profoundly sorry," Causey said against a backdrop of the United States and North Carolina flags. "I cannot begin to imagine the immense sorrow the Strickland family must continue to feel, but they will forever be in my thoughts and prayers. It is my hope that the Strickland family will accept this apology and know that it is offered with compassion and sincerity."

How much does a fatal mistake cost? According to county officials, $2.45 million. Strickland family spokesperson Joyce Fitzpatrick says the money will go towards establishing a foundation for need-based scholarships.

"The Stricklands were not interested in money," she said. "That cannot bring their son back."

No, of course they didn't. Explaining that virtual goods have no real monetary value, they refused to do anything. This completely makes sense to me. What doesn't is the reaction garnered from educators across the country.

"What happened here is somebody stole almost $4,000 and got away cold," said Joshua Fairfield, an associate professor of law at Washington and Lee University in Virginia.

"This is just a matter of zeros," Fairfield said. "The first time IBM loses $10 million, we're going to see some police action."

While countries like China and Korea already have laws in place that make virtual theft a crime, the United States has no such laws, and I for one am glad. If the government acknowledges these items have value, them that value can be taxed. If you argue that his stuff was worth $3800, where is the government's cut? I don't think this is a box we need to be opening. What do you think?

When a virtual crook struck this gamer, he called real cops [TwinCities.com via Wired Blogs]

115 fugitives, lured by gifts, arrested in El Paso sting [El Paso Times via GameRush Entertainment]

The two had been playing a sports video game when an argument erupted over who would play the next game, according to Lansdowne Police Chief Daniel J. Kortan Jr. "It was a dispute over the use of a video game," he said.

Not that it is amazingly important, but I'd be interested to know what they were playing. Tony Hawk? Tiger Woods? Either way, the fact that it was a sports game and not an FPS or GTA game tends to support the theory that the younger boy, still being held at a Delaware County prison, was simply one troubled individual. Many of you in the comments section of the first story were asking where the parents were, but what parent would expect their child to kill over a sports franchise?

Also there was some confusion as to how many times the older brother was stabbed, with some papers reporting twice and others only once. I believe the source of the confusion there is that the coroner's report sites the cause of death as a single stab wound to the heart. According to the original story I cited he was stabbed once in the lung and once in the heart. Only the heart wound was fatal, hence the coroner's report indicating a single stab wound.

We'll keep you informed if any more information surfaces.

Teen held in brother's slaying [The Philadelphia Inquirer via Game Politics]

"I don't believe the actual game itself was the cause of it. I don't believe they were acting out in any way or mimicking anything in a video game. I believe it was actual use of the game and whose turn it was," said Lansdowne Police Chief Daniel Kortan.

It sounds like he phrased that response specifically to ward off a potential wave of violent video game outcry, doesn't it? It's nice to see that situations like this can be resolved without immediately tossing the blame on our favorite hobby.

Thirteen year-old Jahmir Ricks was arrested at the scene, tearfully confessing to police upon their arrival. He is being charged as an adult with murder in the first degree. Something failed in this situation that had absolutely nothing to do with video games. Normal people don't go from arguing over who gets to play a video game to murderous rage in the blink of an eye.

Brother Kills Brother in Video Game Dispute [6abc.com - Thanks Dru]

If the launches do go ahead, we have to negate the issues as far as we can, but we can't remove the risk factors for people coming to or going away from the store.

Then they added:

Plus, the Boogie Man comes out at night.

Please disregard my use of quotations through most of this article. Mark Wilson

Police Explain Concern over PS3 Launch [via maxconsole]

A spokesperson for the Metropolitan Police told the Sun: "The use of the games console was inappropriate and unprofessional. Senior officers are dealing with the matter." They'll get right on it after the firmware update finishes. Michael McWhertor

Follow me to the PlayStation [The Sun]

Managers found Amber Belken, 24, at the store about 2 p.m. after going by the store to see why she wasn't answering the phone. Police said a witness saw Belken enter the store alone around 9 a.m. and that they believe she was confronted by her killer as she prepared for the store's 10 a.m. opening.

Police believe robbery to be the motive in the killing. Anyone who lives in the area and was near the store between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. should call police, 210-207-7635 if they have any information. Brian Crecente

Clerk Found Dead in Video Game Store [KSAT]

Cpl. Christopher Long, 34, was indicted Monday on second-degree murder for the death of 18-year-old college student Payton Strickland, which was shot Dec. 1.

Stories do not address whether Strickland had a controller in his hand when he was shot, though his roommate said that might have been the case. The stories do say he was unarmed.

District Attorney Ben David said Long mistook the sound of another sheriff deputy's battering ram hitting a door as a gunshot. Strickland was shot in the shoulder and once in the head. The fatal shot first ricocheted off of another object, according to an autopsy report.

Deputies believed that the raid would be high risk because of pictures found on the Internet which showed one of Strickland's friend's posing with guns and because UNC Wilmington police had said they had received information that the friend, who didn't live with Strickland, was known to carry a weapon.

Strickland and two friends were suspected of beating a UNC Wilmington student and robbing him of two Playstation 3s in November.

"This indictment is an important first step in holding accountable everyone responsible for Peyton's death - but this is only a first step," his parents, Don and Kathy Strickland, said in a written statement. "None of these actions can bring Peyton back to us, but perhaps they can save someone else's child."

Family and friends of Long, who was fired last week, described the man as widely known, respected and loved. He has, they say, received death threats since the shooting.

These cases are never black and white and in my investigatory experience, which is quite substantial, charging an officer or deputy in a case like this is very rare. Brian Crecente

Former N.C. sheriff's deputy charged in death of teen during raid [AP]

Two police officers in Rhode Island are being investigated for using their magical policeman powers to skip to the front of the PlayStation 3 launch line at the Sony Store in Providence Place Mall. Apparently one Warwick officer and one Providence officer were among a group of seven folks ushered into the front of the queue on launch day by a couple of mall security guards, both of which are now jobless.

Both officers are expected to receive disciplinary action. The Providence cop is quoted as saying he didn't do anything wrong. Tell that to the first couple of people who went home empty handed, asshole.

This marks the beginning of a disturbing trend. First police bust in line, next thing you know they'll be using their sirens as a way to avoid having to sit in traffic or wait at stop signs. Oh, wait. Michael Fahey

2 officers accused of skipping line to buy PlayStation 3 consoles [azcentral.com]

We've already established that PSPs will reduce children to tears. Now we learn that they'll get you in trouble with homeland security, as well.

Blogger Robert A. relates that he was simply sitting in his car, "pleasuring himself to a round of Tekken" (I wish I made that up) when he got hassled by angry cops who thought he was a terrorist.

He immediately yelled (not politely) at me and forced me to put my hands in the air, step outside the car, and place both hands on the side of the car. He then proceded to pat me down and handcuff me from behind, and then asked me to sit down on the curb. He peeked inside my car, with flashlight in hand, and thoroughly searched my car (lucky I didn't have my 6-pack next to me, as I originally planned to bring along). He picked up my PSP as evidence of "unusual behavior" and left to his car. There, I would assume, he traced my tags, performed a background check, and called in an additional police cruiser. He came out, and by now, the second cruiser had arrived with two additional men; they all came towards me. I was deeply interrogated.

The article unfortunately reads like a republican 14-year-old's essay on the political climate, and ends How safe are we? Could the PSP pose as a tool for the next generation of hacking? Is this potential one of the things that Sony is trying to protect us from by pressing firmware updates, and, eliminating the ability to run homebrew? Is the PSP really a toy? Give me a large break. Eliza Gauger

More here [XhardwareReviews, via Digg]

Summer vacation! And if you lived in China, you'd jet over to the local internet cafe and play some MMO until your eyes bled. Well, you would have if the Chinese government weren't such a big wet blanket. The country's MInistry of Culture is kicking off a campaign to monitor internet cafes from July 1st to September 30th this year. This crackdown will keep kids out of the cafes and on the street, where they can do safe things like play in traffic. Middle school teachers are being hired to serve as internet cafe supervisors. School's out? Yeah, right. Brian Ashcraft

More Here [Pacific Epoch] via Joystiq

Socorro (Texas) police say Silva, 16, has set up a rock cocaine business and was trading the crack for electronics, consoles and video games. He was arrested after a customer was tagged for breaking into a home and swiping some consoles and games. She told police she traded the gaming goodies for five rocks of cocaine.

When Silva was arrested he had 52 rocks on him. I wonder if El Paso County Jail lets its inmates play Grand Theft Auto? Brian Crecente

Warrant issued in recent burglaries
[El Defensor Chieftain]