Louisiana newspapers are providing additional coverage to the stinging judicial rebuke which a federal judge administered to the state's controversial video game law on Thursday evening.

An AP report out of Baton Rouge quotes Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (pictured) on the judicial reversal:

"I'm calling on all parents to diligently monitor the video games that their children are allowed to play. If the courts can not protect our children, then we need to do it by rejecting the merchant of violence," she said.

The Advocate spoke with a disappointed Rep. Roy Burrell (D), sponsor of the bill.

"If you can train a military-type person using these video games, you can do it to kids," Burrell told the newspaper. He added that courts aren't yet ready to accept that premise.

GP: Maybe the court would pay more attention if Burrell provided some, you know, evidence, rather than the nonsense he put forth during the legislative debate on the bill. Just a thought. Judge Brady took note of this as well when he wrote in Thursday's ruling:

"The evidence that was submitted to the legislature in connection with the bill that became the statute is sparse and could hardly be called in any sense reliable. Much of the 'evidece' presented consisted of newspaper articles on the evils of video games..."
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In today's column GP examines the circus atmosphere surrounding Louisiana's video game legislation. It's especially timely given Federal District Court Judge James Brady's trashing of the Louisiana law in a preliminary injunction ruling issued last night.

By the way, it looks like the GP column will appear every Friday on Joystiq. There was some discussion of Thursdays, but that's the day GP feeds his WoW addiction...

State Rep. Roy Burrell (D) is standing by his man.

The sponsor of Louisiana's contested video game law refused to be drawn into the nasty fight Jack Thompson picked in recent days with Attorney General Charles Foti (D) and his deputy, Burton Guidry (see yesterday's GP coverage for details).
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In a terse, one-page ruling, Federal District Court Judge James Brady has refused to permit controversial Miami attorney Jack Thompson to file an amicus curiae ("friend of the court") brief in the ongoing lawsuit over Louisiana's recently-enacted video game law.

Thompson, of course, was heavily involved in the Louisiana statute, helping Rep. Roy Burrell (D) draft the underlying legislation, HB 1381. The anti-game attorney claimed in his request to the court that Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti, a named defendant in the case, approved of Thompson's amicus motion.

As previously reported here on GamePolitics, Thompson's request to file an amicus brief - if granted - would have permitted the long-time video game industry nemesis to provide information to the court even though he is not a party to the lawsuit.

Shortly after Thompson made his request to the court, game industry lawyers objected to the Miami attorney's participation on a variety of technical grounds. Among these was Thompson's signature on his amicus motion, which lists him as "Defendant and Co-Counsel." The game industry contends that he is neither. For his part, Judge Brady appears to have found the industry's argument convincing.

Thompson's amicus motion (in MS Word format) can be seen here. The industry's objection (pdf) is here. For all GamePolitics coverage of the Thompson amicus issue, click here.

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Shocked, but not surprised.

That is how Louisiana Rep. Roy Burrell (D), sponsor of his state's contested video game law described his reaction to the video game industry's suit to have HB1381 overturned on constitutional grounds.

In an interview with the Shreveport Times, Burrell said, "I knew it would happen, but this being my first time, it shocked me. I'm all for free speech, but not at the detriment of children," Burrell said.

"If I'm wrong, I apologize, but I don't see it that way. When it relates to protecting these kids, I don't apologize."

Reacting to a line in the lawsuit which reads, "Like great literature, these games often involve themes such as good versus evil, triumph over adversity, struggle against corrupt powers, and quest for adventure," Burrell said, "The kind of literature I've seen in some of these games is not 'great.' It may be great for somebody but it's not great for children. It's great for profits and great for controlling the minds of kids, but literary value? None... You're the one who's killing the cops. You're the one who's beating the woman. Pavlov's Law kicks in, giving you a reward for this behavior."

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As of today, there is a violent video game law in effect in Louisiana.

GamePolitics has confirmed with her staff that Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (D, seen at left) signed HB1381 into law last night. Under terms of the legislation, it takes effect immediately. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Roy Burrell (D) and drafted by controversial Miami attorney and anti-game activist Jack Thompson, defines violent video games as "harmful to minors" in much the same way as pornography.

Using language from the well-known Miller test of obscenity, the new law prohibits sales or rentals to minors of games which a judge has determined meet these conditions:

"The average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the video or computer game, taken as a whole, appeals to the minor's morbid interest in violence."

"The game depicts violence in a manner patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community with respect to what is suitable for minors."

"The game, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors."

The video game industry is expected to appeal on First Amendment grounds. GamePolitics is seeking comment from the ESA at this time.

Attorney Thompson circulated an e-mail on the new law this morning, calling the signing of the bill "personally gratifying" and alleging a harassment campaign against him on the part of the videogame industry.
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Let's call this one the "Battle in the Bayou."

Assuming that Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco signs Rep. Roy Burrell's video game bill into law, it will, of course, trigger a First Amendment challenge by the video game industry. Nothing new there. We've seen such court cases many times before, in Illinois, Michigan, California and elsewhere.

But this is shaping up as something far more than a court battle. This fight comes equipped with baggage. Lots of baggage.

Controversial Miami attorney and anti-game crusader Jack Thompson wrote Rep. Burrell's bill and testified on its behalf in the Louisiana legislature. Thompson's incessant e-mails are already crowing about yesterday's success in the Louisiana Senate, where the bill passed 35-0

Doug Lowenstein, of course, is the president of the ESA, and the video game industry's point man.

These two do not like each other. In fact, they really don't like each other.

For his part, Thompson says such outrageous and ugly things about Lowenstein that GP wonders why the ESA boss doesn't sue the gadfly attorney for defamation.

The ESA, on the other hand, has placed Thompson on their "ignore" list. They like to pretend he doesn't exist.

Thompson has been issuing frothy assertions about video game violence for years, but 2006 saw his first real foray into the legislative arena. He's been studying past video game rulings, trying to craft a bill that will withstand the inevitable First Amendment challenge. In addition to Louisiana's Burrell, Thompson has been working with Delaware Rep. Helene Keeley (D), although it's unclear whether Keeley's bill will advance.

For his part Lowenstein has guided the industry with a steady hand for more than a decade. The ESA has never lost a constitutional challenge on his watch. Although he's too much of a professional to ever say it, you can bet he's determined not to lose this one. Especially this one.

Stay tuned. This is one fight you won't want to miss.

Update: Jack Thompson commented that he has had some state-level exposure in the past. "I was the chief witness for the Washington State bill two years ago," he said in an e-mail.

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Based on today's story concerning Louisiana's SB340, we asked the ESA to comment on its support of the legislation, which appears on its way to certain passage. ESA president Doug Lowenstein provided his thoughts, addressing both Sen. James David Cain's SB340 and Rep. Roy Burrell's HB1381, which the ESA believes is unconstitutional.

"We oppose HB 1381, which would add video games containing violent content to the State's 'Harmful to Minors' statute, and is no different from other laws already stricken by the courts," Lowenstein said.

"As is consistent with our long standing position going back several years in other states where such modernization of 'Harmful to Minors' laws have been passed with our support, we don't have any objection to adding video games to the Louisiana 'Harmful to Minors' statute as provided in the compromise approach of SB 340 (sponsored by Senator Cain), which would close an existing loophole in the law so that video games are regulated the same as movies. It would also fix fatal flaws in the underlying 'Harmful to Minors' statute to make it constitutional."

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Jack Thompson occasionally seeks to interject his video game theories into criminal investigations of youth violence. Sometimes he succeeds, as in a Louisiana homicide investigation currently being conducted by the West Feliciana Parish Sheriff's Office (WFPSO). West Feliciana Parish is a largely unincorporated area of central Louisiana.

As reported by The Advocate, Thompson suggested to the WFPSO that a murder committed in the parish on Tuesday may have been motivated by video games.

The WFPSO took Thompson's information and used it as a basis to search the home of a 16-year-old suspect in the crime. A police official told the newspaper that deputies seized several M-rated video games from the residence. Captain Spence Dilworth, however, drew no conclusions from his findings.

"I think (the murder) goes beyond video games, but who's to say?," Dilworth commented, adding that the question of whether video games lead to youth violence might be "more of a debate for the living room rather than the courtroom."

The suspect whose home was searched and a 17-year-old accomplice were arrested for first-degree murder and armed robbery on Wednesday. On Thursday a judge ruled that the suspects would be tried as adults. The 16-year-old knew the victim, 55-year-old Michael Gore and lived in a mobile home parked on Gore's property.

Thompson, the controversial antigame lawyer from Miami, told The Advocate on Friday that he suggested the WFPSO look into the video game angle because published reports describing the nature of Gore's wounds "raised a red flag."

According to Thompson, published reports that the 16-year-old confessed to police that he and the other boy killed Gore because the victim would not let him borrow his car followed "the same scenario in Grand Theft Auto."

An autopsy showed that Gore had been shot in the face and beaten.

"Nobody shoots anybody in the face unless you're a hit man or a video gamer," Thompson told the newspaper.

Thompson was in Baton Rouge on Tuesday to testify before a Louisiana Senate subcommittee considering HB1381, video game legislation proposed by Rep. Roy Burrell (D).

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Following yesterday's committee approval, a video game bill making its way through the Louisiana legislature now faces one final hurdle on the floor of the State Senate.

As reported by the Shreveport Times, HB1381, proposed by Rep. Roy Burrell (D) and drafted by antigame activist Jack Thompson, was passed unanimously by the Senate's Judiciary "A" Committee.

"We are not violating (the video game industry's) First Amendment rights, Rep. Burrell told the committee. "We are protecting our children."

Also testifying on behalf of the bill was Steve Strickland, brother of Fayette, Alabama Police Officer Arnold Strickland. The officer was killed in a murderous rampage by 18-year-old Grand Theft Auto player Devin Moore in 2003.

HB1381, which began in Louisiana's House, now heads to the full Senate for consideration. This should be an interesting debate, since,as reported by the Times-Picayune, the Senate recently amended SB340, a bill proposed by one its own members, specifically removing language restricting game violence.

The Associated Press has more on this story, while WBRZ-2 News has a brief video clip.

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Louisiana continues to move closer to adopting video game legislation today as the State Senate considers HB1381. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Roy Burrell (D, seen at left), passed the Louisiana House unanimously on May 16th.

Controversial Miami attorney Jack Thompson drafted Burrell's bill and will testify on its behalf before the Louisiana Senate's Judiciary "A" Committee this morning at 10:00.

Meanwhile, the Senate unanimously passed its own video game bill on May 22nd. SB 340, sponsored by Sen. James David Cain (R), has been sent to the House for consideration and has been placed before that body's Committee on Administration of Criminal Justice.

Burrell's bill addresses violence in games, using a variation of the Miller obscenity standard to define which games would be "harmful to minors." Under HB1381, a judge would be required to determine whether or not a game:

1. violates "contemporary community standards" and appeals to a minor's "morbid interest" in violence

2. "depicts violence in a manner patently offensive to prevailing standards in the adult community with respect to what is suitable for minors."

3. "taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors."

SB340 was amended prior to Senate passage earlier this month and sections related to violence removed at the urging of the video game industry. As it now stands, the bill prohibits the sale of sexually explicit game content to minors.

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This weekend's selection of editorials and op-eds all deal with Louisiana's pending video game legislation, a subject which GamePolitics has been tracking relentlessly.

First up we have none other than Jack Thompson, the Miami attorney and anti-game activist, who penned an op-ed, "Proposal is needed to prevent a Louisiana Columbine" for the Shreveport Times.

The Times, of course, ripped both Thompson and the Louisiana legislation in its own May 16th editorial, so perhaps this was the paper's way of giving the Miami attorney equal time.

Thompson's op-ed contains nothing GP readers haven't heard before, save for the news that the controversial anti-game activist will be testifying before the Louisiana State Senate this Tuesday as that body considers Rep. Roy Burrell's video game bill, HB1381. Burrell's proposal was approved by the Louisiana House unanimously earlier this month. Thompson helped draft the legislation. Beyond that, Thompson once again touts his 1999 appearance on the Today Show, cites several well-known school shootings, and mentions research data which he claims gives support to his position.

As he did at the May 10th hearing on Rep. Roy Burrell's bill in the Louisiana House, Thompson continues to push perhaps the silliest idea we've ever heard in the long-running political debate over video game content:

"All of the 'Grand Theft Auto' games are designed to be played on the PlayStation 2 with the 'dual shock' controller. This hand-held device gives you a pleasurable buzz back into your hands with each kill. This is operant conditioning, behavior modification right out of B.F. Skinner's laboratory."

Houma Today, named "Newspaper of the Year" by the Louisiana Press Association, issued an editorial in opposition to Louisiana's pending legislation. Houma Today's editors pose the question, "If it's unconstitutional, why do it?"
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Lots of editorial opinion to check out today, so here goes:

Strong stuff in the Washington Post, where writer Jose Antonio Vargas offers more info on the highly-controversial Super Columbine Massacre RPG game, including the revelation of the real name of its creator, Danny LeDonne (seen at left). By the way, I think GP is first to reveal LeDonne's MySpace. The WaPo's Vargas also spoke to the widow of Columbine victim Dave Sanders, a popular teacher killed in the 1999 school shooting. Vargas reports that, upon learning that a video game based on the massacre had been created, Mrs. Sanders was, quite understandably, unable to continue the conversation.

In the Peoria Journal-Star, columnist Phil Luciano blames poor writing skills on video games. Luciano writes in part, "Many of my college students... seem to be less familiar with books than earlier generations. In part, you can blame the influence of video games in pre-teens' lives. If the choice is 'Moby Dick' or Playstation, I think we know which one a kid will pick... In other words, good writing means good salaries. Think about that the next time you choose between taking your kid to the video store or the library..."

GP: For many reasons, we think Luciano couldn't be more wrong on this point. We'd advise him to do a little research next time, and encourage him to read Marc Prensky's excellent Don't Bother Me, Mom - I'm Learning!!.
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As reported by GamePolitics, the Louisiana House unanimously passed Rep. Roy Burrell's HB1381 on Tuesday. The bill, which applies the so-called Miller obscenity test to video games, is typical of the recent "games as porn" legislative tactic seen in several other states.

Louisiana's newspaper editors are weighing in on the bill. From what GP has seen, they're not happy. Managing Editor Jeffrey Zeringue writes in The Daily Comet, "...Why does government feel the need to parent children? ...Few will be persuaded that violent video games or movies have a negative effect on children. It's only a game. It's only a movie. People are smart enough to distinguish the difference, some believe. ...As for me, I believe I can give better guidance to my children than Baton Rouge or Washington."

In the Houma Courier, editor Mike Gorman is even more blunt:

"I could watch football from now until the cows come home and I wouldn't be able to throw like Brett Favre... And I could play Grand Theft Auto for the next 12 years... I don't think I would be looking for policemen to murder or prostitutes to pimp. That's because - and let me phrase this correctly so that even the solons in Baton Rouge can comprehend the message - IT'S JUST A GAME."

"It must be frustrating for our legislators to be in the seat of government and not have people and institutions bend to their every whim... The Legislature, which can't even find the intestinal fortitude to limit the number of assessors in New Orleans, can be moved to action."

"The bottom line is this: If you don't like what your kid is doing or watching, change it. If you don't like what my kid is doing or watching, butt out..."
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Frankly, we're stunned.

Despite last Wednesday's embarrassing committee hearing marked by misinformation, gross distortions and frothy, purple prose about crushing skulls, 26-year-old murderers and how force feedback controllers teach one to be a cold-blooded killer, the Louisiana House passed HB 1381, Rep. Roy Burrell's video game bill, 102-0 yesterday.

102-0.

According to the Associated Press, several House members questioned whether Burrell's bill, HB1381, would survive an inevitable First Amendment challenge by the video game industry, but voted for the bill anyway.

"That's for the courts to decide," said Rep. Danny Martiny, (R), who presided over the House Criminal Justice committee which approved Burrell's bill on May 10th, thus setting it up for yesterday's floor vote in the House. "Anything's subject to challenge."
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Having watched the video of last week's Criminal Justice Committee hearing in the Louisiana House of Representatives concerning HB1381, GP is disheartened by what passes for serious debate in that chamber.

We're frankly aghast at the scare tactics and distortions foisted upon the committee by Rep. Roy Burrell (D) and his witness, Miami attorney and anti-game activist Jack Thompson

Not everything presented by Rep. Burrell was out of line. It's entirely proper for Burrell to raise the 2005 video game-related findings of the American Psychological Association in the context of the debate over HB1381. That is precisely the kind of research data which elected officials need to evaluate in formulating public policy. We only wish Burrell himself had raised the APA's conclusion, rather than leaving the heavy lifting on his own bill to an agenda-driven witness.

But much of the other so-called information presented in support of the legislation ranged from conjectural to non-applicable to downright ludicrous.

In the latter category we lump Thompson's contention that the PS2 Dual Shock (i.e., vibrating) controller is used in the Grand Theft Auto series to provide reinforcement to violent behavior.

The controller "literally gives you a pleasurable jolt and vibration back into your hands every time you kill someone," said Thompson. "When you take a car and you run over innocent virtual pedestrians in the game you get a pleasurable vibration as your wheels go over their skulls..."

Vibrations in the hands teach you to kill? What's the scientific basis for that? And while a half-dozen federal courts have held that games are protected speech, Thompson begs to differ.

"It's not even speech of any kind. It is a device," he told the committee, speaking of GTA Vice City and other violent games.
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