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Teen on trial for murder, defense takes aim at stress & video games
Prosecutors at the murder trial of Daniel Petric claim the teen shot both of his parents, killing his mother, because they would not allow the 16-year-old to play Halo 3. According to the prosecution, Daniel Petric, who now stands trial at 17-years-old, was forbidden to buy the 'M' rated game Halo 3 by his parents Mark and Susan Petric. In response, the teen secretly purchased the game but was caught as he returned home prompting his parents to place the game inside of a lock box, which also contained a 9mm handgun. Mark Petric, a minister at the Life Assembly of God in Wellington, Ohio, survived the shooting, which occurred the evening of October 20, 2007, when his daughter and her husband interrupted the horrific incident taking place. In his testimony, Mark Petric recalled Daniel sitting both him and his wife down saying, "Would you guys close your eyes. I have a surprise for you." Daniel Petric then opened fire on his parents. Lawyers for Daniel Petric claim the teen had been under a large amount of stress due to a snowboarding accident which left him housebound for a year leaving him nothing to do but watch television and play video games. During testimony, Daniel Petric asked for his father's forgiveness and expressed his regret in the shooting which led to a heart-wrenching exchange that ended with his father exclaiming, "You're my son ... You're my boy."It's difficult to form an opinion about this situation because the parents of Daniel Petric did exactly what should have been done, regulate their son's gaming habits. Regardless of your opinion, the Petric family story is a tragic one.[via Kotaku]
