Published Thursday, 17 August 2006 by
Tudor Carsten
Florida lawyer and anti-video game crusader Jack Thompson has filed a petition with the 11thJudicial Circuit Court asking for Take-Two Interactive Software and Wal-Mart to supply him with an advance copy of Bully - the upcoming game from Take-Two and Rockstar. Thompson has criticized both Wal-Mart and the ESRB for the fact that Wal-Mart has been taking advance orders for Bully even though the ESRB, which has had the game for over a year, has yet to rate it. In the result, Thomson says he plans to have an independent third party play the game in order to determine if Bully would constitute a public nuisance in the state of Florida.
Thomson, who likens the situation to a pharmaceutical company selling a drug that has yet to receive FDA approval, has accused Take-Two of instigating 'a new wave of successfully orchestrated harassment" against him. This harassment apparently consists of phone calls received by Thompson earlier this week from a caller identifying himself as 'Peter"?, who called Thompson a sexual deviant and threatened his life. This is not the first time Thompson's life has been threatened - in December of 2005, a 16-year old gamer was charged with harassing communication for threatening to kill Thompson.
Take-Two has not yet commented on Thompson's petition.
Coverage at http://shorl.com/demubredykegri (Gamespot)
Thompson's petition at http://shorl.com/ferejupridufi
