There's No D&D In Prison

By Marcus Gilmer in Miscellaneous on Jan 26, 2010 3:40PM

One inmate has learned the hard way that once you go behind bars, there's no Dungeons & Dragons to play in your future. Kevin T. Singer had filed a lawsuit against the Wisconsin's Waupun prison claiming the prison's ban on role playing games violated his First Amendment rights. The 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals disagreed, ruling that the policy was reasonable. The ban was put in place in 2004 after fears were raised about possible gang activity surrounding Singer and three other inmates who played the game. The Sun-Times explains:

Singer was told by prison officials that he could not keep the materials because Dungeons & Dragons "promotes fantasy role playing, competitive hostility, violence, addictive escape behaviors, and possible gambling," according to the ruling. The prison later developed a more comprehensive policy against all types of fantasy games, the court said.

In the end, it's hard to feel sorry for Singer, who was sentenced to life in prison in 2002 for first-degree murder (bludgeoning his sister's boyfriend to death with a sledgehammer).