Press Room

For Immediate Release
September 26, 2005

Contact
Paul Murphy:
(801)538-1892
pmurphy@utah.gov

"This new game, 25 to Life, glorifies murdering police officers and brings violent video games to a new level of depraved indecency. Still, I am grateful that the video game publisher is willing to give us more time to discuss our concerns," says Shurtleff.

During the weekend, Shurtleff spoke to Bill Gardner, the new president of Eidos Inc., about the anguish this game will cause the families of police officers killed in the line of duty. The software developer and publisher issued a press release today stating that the release of "25 to Life" would be pushed back from October 2005 to sometime next year.

The widow and children of Roosevelt Police Chief Cecil Gurr, who was gunned down during a drug dispute in 2001, decided to organize a silent protest against the game after they learned it was designed by Avalanche Software in Salt Lake City. Numerous law enforcement officers plan to join the family at today's protest.

"At the funeral of Chief Gurr, his wife Lynette asked me if I could make sure something like this would never happen again," says Shurtleff. "That tearful conversation motivates me to make sure no one profits from murdering a police officer or promotes a game that allows children to win a game by killing a cop."

If "25 to Life" is ever released, Shurtleff will call on retailers to refuse to stock the game and urge parents to get more involved with their children's game selections. The Attorney General and the Gurrs will also ask the Entertainment Software Ratings Board to give the game an "Adults Only" rating, which would stop the game from being sold to children and severely hamper sales.

 

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