Everquest Connection Alleged In Child Death

Thanks to NWAOnline.net for their story regarding a mother facing manslaughter charges which may relate to videogame addiction, following her 3-year-old daughter's death after being left alone in an overheated car. According to the piece, "Authorities said [Mary Christina] Cordell and her boyfriend, Eric Long, 21, may have been so fixated with the interactive game EverQuest that she neglected to pay adequate attention to Brianna's whereabouts on Aug. 8, the day the child died." The article also points out posts to the Spouses Against Everquest mailing-list from Cordell, one of which is controversial, but tragically prescient: "Verant is also an enabler by providing a type of 'entertainment' that requires an inordinary amount of time to do basic functions of the average role playing games... I'm afraid that eventually many more people will be hurt or even killed by this 'service'."

Comments

Don't confuse the cause for the effect

[Quixotic Raindrop]

People who would be addicted to Everquest are addicits, anyway. Blaming the developer and distributor for the psychological problems of the player places the blame in the wrong place.

Nothing to do with Everquest

[SteWhite]

This child died because the parents neglected it, simple as that. What they were doing doesn't matter.

Just because they were playing a computer game, it makes the news. If they were distracted watching TV instead, we would never have heard about it.

Ever heard of this word?

[Alpha27]

Self-control?

The user decides to continue and forget about life, then it's not the fault of the developer. The person has CHOSEN to forget the real world, for the virtual one. Don't blame the developer if the user neglects life.

It's obvious users like these are missing something from their real lives that they escape so easily into the virtual one.

It'll never happen to any of us...

[lightspawn]

The average slashdot reader spends so much time browsing and playing games that he's extremely unlikely to have any children in the first place.

When life hands you lemons...

[Dr. Bent]

...sue sombody because it's not your fault.

What the fuck happened to the concept of personal repsonsibility! Jesus H. Tapdancing Christ!

"I murder people because I was abused as a child."

"I rob people because the system keeps me poor."

"I'm addicted to drugs because nobody will give me a job."

BULLSHIT!

It's not the government's job to take care of you. It's not Verant's job to take care of you. It's not Nabisco's or Microsoft's or Anyone's job to take care of you...except you. And if you can't take care of yourself, I'm sorry; But that's no excuse to drag the rest of us down too. If we keep heading down this road, eventually they'll be nobody left but laywers and 'victims', and modern civilization will grind to a halt.

Re:Responsability

[PK_ERTW]

Here in Canada, a girl who got drunk in an office party - thanks to the boss, with an open bar - drove her car and had an accident.

This is a little off-topic, but since you brought it up, you should get the details correct. This case stinks (and is one of Canada's worst civil lawsuits in my opinion) because the lady drank at the party and was offered a drice home, cab fare, and a hotel room to stay in. She refused all three and instead went to a bar to drink further. She then drove home well after the party ended. Both her employer and the bar were found liable (some percentage each)

This is not only an example of someone taking responsiblity for there own actions, but a travesty that the courts agreed it was not her fault.

pk