FAYETTE, Ala. (AP) — A 20-year-old whose lawyers claimed the videogame “Grand Theft Auto” and childhood abuse caused him to kill three small-town police officers was convicted Aug. 9 of capital murder.
The jury deliberated for just over an hour before convicting Devin Moore, who could face the death penalty. Defense lawyers had partly blamed Moore’s actions on the hours he spent playing videogames from the “Grand Theft Auto” series, in which players shoot police officers and steal cars.
While the judge barred jurors from hearing testimony linking the 2003 shootings to the game, defense lawyer Jim Standridge reminded them that Moore, after his arrest, told police, “Life is a videogame; everybody has to die sometime.” Moore had pleaded not guilty and not guilty by reason of mental defect.