A story in the Monterey Herald on March 25, 2001 linked roleplaying games to two young marines that have been charged with attempted murder.  The two soldiers were attending the Defense Department Language Institute at Fort Ord near Monterey when they were arrested and charged with a vicious, random knife attack on a young woman.  Although the military authorities have clamped a gag order on all military personnel regarding the slayings, the Monterey Herald contacted high school acquaintances of one of the marines, who told the paper that the murder suspect had played RPGs while in high school.

ICv2 contacted two game stores in Monterey that carry RPGs, and both said that they hadn't noticed any sort of backlash or slackening of sales from the article.  While the facts of this case have not yet been made public, it does appear that Monterey Herald, which reportedly ran a story six months ago blaming the suicide of a teenager on roleplaying games, is quick to put the onus on RPGs.  This is part of a larger pattern of recent events that connects various types of criminal behavior to pop culture products (see 'Scapegoating Entertainment').  Developing.