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Nev. Couple Blame Internet for
Neglect July 15, 2007
By Associated Press
RENO, Nev. - A couple who
authorities say were so obsessed with the Internet and video games
that they left their babies starving and suffering other health
problems have pleaded guilty to child neglect.
The children of Michael and Iana
Straw, a boy age 22 months and a girl age 11 months, were severely
malnourished and near death last month when doctors saw them after
social workers took them to a hospital, authorities said. Both
children are doing well and gaining weight in foster care,
prosecutor Kelli Ann Viloria told the Reno Gazette-Journal.
Michael Straw, 25, and Iana Straw,
23, pleaded guilty Friday to two counts each of child neglect. Each
faces a maximum 12-year prison sentence.
Viloria said the Reno couple were
too distracted by online video games, mainly the fantasy
role-playing "Dungeons & Dragons" series, to give their children
proper care.
"They had food; they just chose not
to give it to their kids because they were too busy playing video
games," Viloria told the Reno Gazette-Journal.
Police said hospital staff had to
shave the head of the girl because her hair was matted with cat
urine. The 10-pound girl also had a mouth infection, dry skin and
severe dehydration.
Her brother had to be treated for
starvation and a genital infection. His lack of muscle development
caused him difficulty in walking, investigators said.
The Straws have been given public
defenders. Jeremy Bosler, head of the county public defender's
office, declined to comment to The Associated Press on Saturday.
Michael Straw is an unemployed
cashier, and his wife worked for a temporary staffing agency doing
warehouse work, according to court records. He received a $50,000
inheritance that he spent on computer equipment and a large plasma
television, authorities said.
While child abuse because of drug
addiction is common, abuse rooted in video game addiction is rare,
Viloria said.
Last month, experts at an American
Medical Association meeting backed away from a proposal to designate
video game addiction as a mental disorder, saying it had to be
studied further. Some said the issue is like alcoholism, while
others said there was no concrete evidence it's a psychological
disease.
Patrick Killen, spokesman for
Nevada Child Abuse Prevention, said video game addiction's
correlation to child abuse is "a new spin on an old problem."
"As we become more technologically
advanced, there's more distractions," Killen said. "It's easy for
someone to get addicted to something and neglect their children.
Whether it's video games or meth, it's a serious issue, and (we)
need to become more aware of it."
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