D&D and violence

[el-remmen]

People aren't supposed to enjoy their time in prison.

Family Member: So, Rocky, how was your time in prison?

Rocky: Well, I was locked against my will for 20 years in a big building with hundreds of potentially violent and factionalized men, some of which wanted to rape me, and guarded by people who'd shoot me if I tried to leave, or who'd lock me in cell by myself for days at a time if I acted up, but I did get to play D&D for a couple of hours once or twice a week, so I thoroughly enjoyed it!



EDIT: But kidding aside, yeah, let's avoid any political talk in this thread (that means you Morrus and El-Remmen!) and see if anyone can just provide the resources the OP is looking for.

 

[bweenie]

Thanks for all your leads. There would be a ban on dice, and there may only be softcover books allowed. Interestingly, my clients group of gaming friends in prison is one of the only multi racial groups in the prison.

To answer the question about me -- I used to play D&D a lot, but I just don't really have the time to commit to running or playing in a game. I'm also not much of a discussion board poster, but I have come to Enworld occasionally because of the excellent discussion.

So thanks again, wish me luck. I would love to see the stigma of RPG's as a scapegoat for all the worlds evils evaporate, which is why I'm really into this particular fight.

 

[DrunkonDuty]

Good luck for you and your client (s).

 

[Quartz]

I think Paizo would be a good bet, specifically Erik Mona. I remember a column or two from him about D&D in prisons.

 

[heirodule]

It is astonishing that people have taken the "games corrupt" idea so far that they believe a game will corrupt hardened criminals.

My qualm would less be that it will corrupt them than that it will feed into their existing corruption.

Someone who was already reforming in prison could find D&D a healthy pastime. Someone not interested would easily find it an outlet for reinforcing their existing criminal thought patterns.

 

[Hussar]

I think Paizo would be a good bet, specifically Erik Mona. I remember a column or two from him about D&D in prisons.

I'll second this one. Erik Mona has been very vocal about trying to get Dungeon and Dragon magazines to inmates. Both in print and on his blog he's mentioned it more than a few times.

He'd likely know someone you might be able to talk to.

 

[Gothmog]

I read something about this before, and I think the actual problem that the folks (in that instance) had with D&D in prison is that it can allow for imaginary "goods" (Magic Items, gold etc) to be traded for actual items in the prison economy.

Think of it like a a version of selling WoW items on Ebay, except that instead of money you get Crack, Smokes or a Bitch in exchange.

And, unlike Monopoly, the "playing Piece" in D&D allows for a lot more identification by the player. If they are given a +1 flaming sword in exchange for a carton of smokes and the sword is sundered...I'm guessing it's not out of the question that that might cause some grief amongst the population oat the table.

Yep, Teflon Billy is right- I remember reading some papers about this before as well. The concern isn't so much the game, its the trading for favors that can occur in or out of the game, and the dice, which can also be used for gambling- both of which can cause serious problems in and of themselves.

There is also the issue that many violent crminals are also mentally ill, and/or have a hard time telling right from wrong, or fantasy from reality. Give them a pastime they can escape into, reinforce a "might makes right" concept and consequence-free violence like D&D does, and you're sitting on a potential powderkeg.

 

[jdrakeh]

I've known quite a few former prisoners and working prison guards over the years. Without deviation, they all indicated that the disallowance of D&D boiled down to a contraband issue. No dice, no minis, no sharp pencils, etc. All of these things can be used as weapons (or used to create weapons). Many of the inmates that I've known actually did roleplay in prison, just not with dice, minis, and pencils. This was allowed without issue, I'm told. You might try lobbying for allowance of the old Basic D&D sets with the paper chits.

 

[GammaPaladin]

That sounds more like a county jail environment, which is generally more restrictive due to the short term nature of the inmates' incarceration. Most state prisons do allow the inmates to have pencils and paper...

 

[Slife]

This seems like as good a time as any to bring up the Brazilian Death Squad story. Won first place in the "Creepiest Real Gaming Story" contest.