Student arrested for making a map of his school
by John Bardinelli 
{ May 2nd 2007 at 7:30AM }
A Chinese student was removed from Clements High School in Fort Bend, Texas after parents complained he had re-created the school grounds in a game and uploaded the map for his friends to play. The boy was placed in the district's alternate education school and later arrested, as the police considered him a "terroristic threat". The Chinese community and the boy's mother have rallied behind him, saying the school has acted too harshly in the wake of the Virginia Tech shootings. No charges were filed, though the boy won't be allowed to participate in graduation ceremonies.We don't have to point out how ridiculous this is to our Joystiq readers. How many people have created familiar surroundings using in-game editors? We once made a partial re-creation of our college in Dr. Lunatic Supreme With Cheese. Good thing nobody found out, otherwise we'd be blogging from a soft and squishy padded room right now.
Reader Comments (Page 4 of 4)
Dave @ May 2nd 2007 7:50PM
@t_m
You want to be safe instead of free? How would you like to be my slave? I promise no harm will come to you. I can wrap you in bubble-wrap and you can wear a helmet 24/7 and live in my basement. Sound good?
You're a worthless coward. You make me sick.
m4xn00b @ May 2nd 2007 8:13PM
this is ridiculous! being asian myself i cant help but feel sorry for the guy. i mean the school has disgraced him, his parents will probably disown him (exaggerating) but u get the idea. the bpard totally fucked up his teen years, what the fuck is wrong with them. i want the info on this school board!
Onesimus @ May 2nd 2007 9:05PM
They better arrest Activision also, for recreating New York City for Spiderman 3. This is just stupid in my opinion.
Therum @ May 2nd 2007 9:28PM
The only thing that pisses me off more then the article itself is all the people going "lol fre spech wat?"
This was an isolated incident. In other countries, I couldn't walk around saying Fuck in every sentence like I do here, I couldn't insult Bush, I couldn't tell people I hate them.
Shut the hell up. You have no idea what you're talking about, and you're missing the real point here.
Dave @ May 2nd 2007 9:36PM
@Therum
You're the one missing the point. Who cares what is acceptable in other countries? I don't live there. I live here. If your child had an IQ of 70, would you argue, "There are dumber kids"? Science doesn't work that way--and progress doesn't occur that way. You examine your situation, determine what's wrong with it, and then try to fix it. That's how progress is made. "I've got a horse-drawn carriage, and everyone else in my village has an ox-cart." I guess you don't need a car then? You want to settle for "other countries are worse"? Fine. I don't--and you shouldn't.
Jay @ May 2nd 2007 10:02PM
And what I found even more disturbing was this semi related article.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6608651.stm
Eeeek!
jc12ball @ May 2nd 2007 10:23PM
Wait... so you think this only happened because Texas is a "crazy" state?
I completely agree with Zertoss- Chinese people aren't persecuted that often in Texas, nor are black people.
Most hatred is pointed towards Mexicans, as white people are slowly becoming a minority in Texas, but you can't tell me that there are as many hate crimes against Mexicans here than there are against black people or Chinese people elsewhere.
So kindly explain to me how Texas is a crazy state.
Wait, wait.
Here's strike one against Texas: George Dubya.
Now what else? Your state could be just as crazy as mine.
Ironhead @ May 2nd 2007 11:07PM
From reading the actual article, I had two reactions. One is outrage and sympathy for the kid, because arresting him is ridiculous. However, at the same time, playing a map of your school in SHOOTING game shortly following a school shooting is stupid, you have to expect people to react negatively to that if you have any common sense. But, from reading the comments, it only shows to me that we live in a society of victims, people who can't blame themselves at all for their actions, its always because of their race, or the government being evil, or the like. Its pretty basic common sense, creating a virtual representation of a shooting in a school just might make people think that you might want to do the real thing as well.
acidcorosiv @ May 2nd 2007 11:01PM
So...was the map any good? If it is, then people should offer him a job.
Spakkle @ May 2nd 2007 11:12PM
When did the majority of gamers and bloggers turn into such Knee-jerkers? We love to believe the government is out to get us, and breaking the constitution, and turning into a police state, but until you actually know what your talking about in the slightest, please just save Joystiq's bandwidth and don't talk. What they did is nothing new, nothing illegal, nothing unconstitutional, they have not locked him up and thrown away the key by any means, as someone else said, he will still get a fair trial and like. You fail it (it being understanding how the law works.)
Dave @ May 2nd 2007 11:18PM
@Spakkle
There's something called, "common sense". This event flies in the face of common sense. You shouldn't have to take this "case" to trial. No crime was committed. But the fact that this kid has had to endure all he has is evidence of the current state of affairs in this country. The map wasn't even created during school hours or on school premises. Why pretend there's a case at all? Why are we debating common sense and pretending it's an "issue"?
HappyPants12354 @ May 3rd 2007 1:55AM
For everyone that wanted the map in question -- I have three mirror links.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=F48893HJ
http://rapidshare.com/files/29195663/clmbsp.rar.html
http://www.MegaShare.com/165325
GL HF with it, there are no textures included so it will be quite purple. But you'll still get a general idea.
Also, to people who said the mapmaker was stupid to create it after VTech - he didn't. He made it BEFORE, it was only reported AFTER Vtech.
Enjoy! ^.^
Bob @ May 3rd 2007 1:57AM
security pass first
http://mininova.wordpress.com/
Father Time @ May 3rd 2007 6:02PM
This kid should get a lawyer and sue the school for as much as he can, this kind of BS should not be tolerated.
Brian @ May 3rd 2007 3:37AM
#28, no dude! You have it backward. We should
ALL makes CS maps of our towns and neighborhoods.
If one guy does it, it's easier to scream "Terrorist!", but if we ALL do it, there's no way
the man can interfere. And it'll open up the
ignorant masses' eyes to see that map making is
just one fun aspect of these games. It pretty much
boils down to fear and ignorance, and the way to
combat that is by bringing it out into the open.
I urge EVERYONE here to write to the school and
let them know how wrong their actions are. Do
it for the honor student guy whose graduation has
been taken away!!! It's not fair. It's wrong.
Josh @ May 3rd 2007 3:36AM
Amazingly, a similar thing happened to me in the wake of colembine. I was arested for supposidly saying I was going to blow up my school and suspended pending a hearing. I was transfered to Alt.Ed. and graduated from that. After the school year ended, they dropped all charges and yet they never appologised.
davo_ @ May 3rd 2007 3:40AM
I feel for the kid, when I was in 8th grade in 2000, I was expelled from school for drawing a map of my school for exactly the same reason. Made the map avalible for a game, TFC (Team Fortress Classic).
I found myself sitting in the principals office for 2 hours after I found them peering over my shoulder as I drew the map (both overhead and other views), and took me out of the cafeteria. I didn't have a clue what was going on for another 3 hours when they told me I was being recommended for expulsion, and later, expelled.
And I'm African American. Yea, it's crap.
Hugo @ May 16th 2007 5:26AM
Oh noes!
Better arrest these guys too
http://www.isoma.net/games/goggles.html
you can almost simulate 911! The horror! Terrorists are everywhere
4G64 @ May 3rd 2007 6:09AM
Why is it so hard for people to believe that he didn't make/publish his map after VT. Maybe you're not reading the previous posts, but it's been clearly stated numerous times that the maps had been done and played long before the VT tragedy. This kid is not stupid, nor did he make a bad judgement call. He's the future!
Should we also prosecute every game studio for taking random scenery shots all over the country for game development? What next? Let's prosecute all vacationers while we're at it. I mean who needs to be taking all of those pictures at Disney World? One's enough, right?
When does the paranoia end...
mjs @ May 3rd 2007 7:47AM
"He really deserves to be kicked out, not for making a map of his school; but for making a map of his school SO SOON AFTER VTECH.
Dumb dumb dumb."
The complaint -- and it appears to be a single complaint -- came one day after the shootings apparently; so this was pretty clearly made BEFORE the incident.
I'm not one to by into the racial victimology subculture, but given the focus on the hammer this is pretty clearly a case of racial profiling.
Densha @ May 3rd 2007 10:18AM
i think it's millons times better to shot virtualy on your school than in RL
totally agree with dave smith
HappyPants123546 @ May 3rd 2007 9:45AM
Map found, rofl
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=F48893HJ
http://rapidshare.com/files/29195663/clmbsp.rar.html
http://www.MegaShare.com/165325
archiesteel @ May 3rd 2007 12:20PM
Chris: "Security+lives>freedom of speech
so all the anti-americans saying
'This country is shit. Anyone who thinks we're free is delusional.' are the retards who can go to iran and notice how fortunate they actually are."
Maybe you're unfamiliar with the following quote:
"Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
* Benjamin Franklin.
So, basically, you're the one making anti-american statements here. Sacrificing freedom for security is the slippery slope that leads to fascism. "Give me liberty or give me death" is another famous american quote...perhaps you should learn a bit more of what it means to be American before uttering such nonsense...
archiesteel @ May 3rd 2007 12:25PM
Paul: "None of his civil liberties were violated."
I guess you missed the part where he got removed from his school and won't be able to attend graduation ceremonies. Also the heavy-handed approach that was taken (i.e. arrest instead of a simple interview by police) might damage his reputation.
archiesteel @ May 3rd 2007 12:28PM
Spakkle: "as someone else said, he will still get a fair trial and like. You fail it (it being understanding how the law works.)"
Considering he was not charged with anything, he will *not* get a fair trial (he won't be getting *any* trial).
I find it ironic that you accuse others of not understanding how the law works when you obviously do not understand it any better yourself...
archiesteel @ May 3rd 2007 12:30PM
Therum: "In other countries, I couldn't walk around saying Fuck in every sentence like I do here, I couldn't insult Bush, I couldn't tell people I hate them."
Actually, you can do that in a *lot* of other countries. Stop thinking the US is the only place with free speech laws...
JZBluford @ May 3rd 2007 12:46PM
This is absolutely terrible. While I do believe that his actions should have been slightly monitored, in wake of the shootings, it is absolutely absurd to do what they have done. We as a gaming community should form a unified front. No F'ing joke. Our generation has no voice outside of blogs and gaming sites when it comes to video games in the media. When 2 million people purchase Halo 2 on day one, or when 10 million people have played one of the GTA games, and countless others who have been exposed to half-life or counter-strike, HOW IN THE HELL CAN WE BLAME less than 10 shootings on these factors? We need to expose to stupid public figures as well as the ambulance chasers ala Jack Thompson for what they really, uninformed publicity hogs at the expense of innocent people.
HappyPants123546 @ May 3rd 2007 12:59PM
http://www.flickr.com/photos/8082096@N02/
Screenies of said map.
In the comments include download links
Eschatos @ May 3rd 2007 3:47PM
Chris, you said "Security+lives>freedom of speech
so all the anti-americans saying
"This country is shit. Anyone who thinks we're free is delusional." are the retards who can go to iran and notice how fortunate they actually are."
Why the fuck would lives be worth more than freedom of speech? Soldiers die every day to protect the freedom of speech, and I don't see you complaining. The world has 6.5 billion people, it's grossly overpopulated. Saying that sacrificing a few people occasionally is worth less than the loss of freedom is nothing less than insane. Do you think that banning guns would have stopped Columbine or V-Tech? There are always those that disobey the rules. There is no way to prevent the occasional massacre, short of removing every form of freedom possible. It sucks, but it's the truth. I would rather be the victim of a suicide bombing than any freedom be compromised, for me, or for anyone.
Dave @ May 3rd 2007 8:42PM
@Steve-K
Canada is for Canadians. I'm an American. If you like following orders, then you're the one who should go to another country. Try China or Cuba. They'll tell you exactly what to do. This country is built on different ideals--and I intend to stay here and argue with idiots such as yourself for as long as I have to to keep it that way.
As for not having respect for "higher authority", I hope you're not suggesting that the government is a "higher authority". The government is supposed to represent the best interests of the people in America--not tell them what to do. That's why we elect them and pay their salaries. America is supposed to be a country "OF, BY and FOR the People". If YOU have a problem with that, YOU should go elsewhere.
Serial Map Maker @ May 3rd 2007 8:44PM
#34: "Cartography skills are the new bomb-making. I say we blame Magellan."
=)
For those who haven't ever tried making a map, it takes a lot of time, so you can't blame him for "making a map of his school SO SOON AFTER VTECH". Sure, he may have chosen a bad time to release it, but the thing is, he's just a kid. Kids don't think about silly things like that when they've spent a lot of time creating something cool that they can share. Just my two cents.
college_student @ May 3rd 2007 9:59PM
I agree everyone concerned overreacted; he should have never been arrested. But with that said, questioning him was defiantly in order. In fact at midnight last night the local police department for the college I’m attending received information that worse than what happened at VT was going to happen to my school today. Early this morning the closed the campus, searched it, and it will be open tomorrow. Most likely it was a hoax, but with copy cats out there you just never know. So until things cool down school administrators will be extra sensitive to protecting the hundreds or thousands of students that they are responsible for.
BruteDude @ May 5th 2007 1:00PM
On what charges can he possibly be arrested? I don't understand how he could be arrested. Punished, in this ignorant society of ours, yeah, but arrested. WTF?
MastaL @ May 7th 2007 11:57PM
http://www.myfoxhouston.com/myfox/pages/Home/Detail;jsessionid=AF893D3AA385978EDF7C49487DAF661B?contentId=3085271&version=3&locale=EN-US&layoutCode=VSTY&pageId=1.1.1
Stupid reporter Ned Hibberd. I agree with all of yall that the school is full of bs. trust me, i attend that school.
hadlee @ May 4th 2007 4:54AM
sooner or later the American public would turn to videogames, it was only a matter of time. Owning more guns than you can carry is fine but making a map that took alot of time and effort or *gasp* playing a videogame is dangerous! IDIOTS
Simone @ May 4th 2007 7:06AM
To Sergio Tapia. Read the whole article..... the map had been around for 2 months before the shootings. It is not like he just decided to make the map after the shootings.
I feel so sorry for the kid. It is just terrible how he has been treated.
At least it is a good thing that there is actually freedom/democracy so we are able to talk about this, and it can be shown on the media. (for now)
Gamer_MAMA @ May 4th 2007 10:14AM
Re #44 - Being sent to an alternative school is a death sentence. Very few serious colleges will consider a student who has been in an alternative school - the grades are suspect and you have to convince the college that you aren't a threat. So, they have already successfully complicated the rest of his life.
big-lol @ May 4th 2007 5:00PM
LOLOLOL, you americans are really the big LOL. How stupid can someone be. I laugh a lot when i see this new. you are became so ridiculous. You live with fear and do much crap because of the fear. We at the Europe laugh about you and this things. OMG.LOLOLOL. You are ridiculous.
Julian @ May 4th 2007 7:38PM
If mapping out your school is a terrorist activity, I wonder what adding it to your places on Google Earth is....
Tsukasa135 @ May 5th 2007 12:09PM
In protest, I should make a map of my university on CS:S and blare "Exodus - .44 Magnum Opus" from my dorm room...
This kid has every right to be doing what he did, and should press charges on the police for unlawful search and seizure. As a coup de grace he should also sue them for emotional damage, cuz I'm sure there's nothing quite like getting arrested to brighten your day.
Tsukasa135 @ May 5th 2007 12:13PM
oh yea, not to mention hate-crimes...
Tsukasa135 @ May 5th 2007 2:37PM
that's the problem with our law-system is that they can hold you on "suspicions"
FU @ May 6th 2007 2:33AM
Yea, one of my friends mapped out the software company I used to work for in doom and we all loved playing it, he never killed anybody and that was years ago. BTW if you think this is stupid then email the principle of Clements and tell him so...
Kevin.Moran @ fortbend.k12.tx.us
Here's their web site http://www.fortbend.k12.tx.us/campuses/chs/faculty.cfm?RequestTimeout=60
Phil @ May 7th 2007 12:48PM
not being allowed to participate in high school graduation. thats was one of the happiest moments in my life. i cant imagine how pissed this kid and his parents must be. my friends and i used to make maps for counter strike based on all kinds of familiar building. our own houses, school buildings, and even malls. i didnt shoot up anyone and this kid has done nothing wrong. i would file a lawsuit if they refuse this kid the option of graduation ceremonies. this can be considered discrimination based on his oriental decent. complete BS IMO
GunToutingAmerican @ May 8th 2007 3:30PM
Stage modeled after place = school shooter. = anyone who has ever created a profile with his or her name on it be a pre-meditated murderer = Westwood’s Red Alert series about invasion of America by communist is a worldwide threat to democracy = Resident Evil is a plot to create a super human creature that wipes out countries = STUPID. Thanks small community in Texas for chipping off one more corner of my patriotism.
P.S. Be nice to Texas
P.P.S. and not all Rednecks are racist
kristaphi @ May 20th 2007 1:42AM
I think this demonstrates that the 9/11 terrorists have done what they set out to do - create terror organizations within the United States. Problem for Americans is that those organizations are, for the most part, American governmental bodies. It's come to the point that they're so busy protecting us from outside terrorists that they've begun terrorizing our own citizens in their zeal. I hate to admit it but your plan worked, Osama. No admiration, just reality.
Collen @ May 16th 2007 4:46PM
This student had this interactive map up and online for 2 months before the Va. Tech incident. There was many individuals playing the game. Funny how he didn't get in trouble before the incident. He was punished 2 weeks after the incident . Welcome to the attention grabbing of Fort Bend politicians.
Seraphis @ Jun 4th 2007 5:32PM
I created a very basic CSS map of my home with minimal textures and gave the Terrorist team the heads of my 4 pet cats. I love my cats, so are the Animals Rights freaks gonna break down my door with allegations that I'm promoting animal cruelty? And here I thought it'd be cool to go up against "furries" in CSS! ggwp ._.
brandon9271 @ Jun 10th 2007 8:19PM
what I want to know is where I can download this map that he made :) It would be funny if the map got the attention of some game developers and they gave him a job! that would be a nice "f*** you" to the school board!
Abscissa @ Jun 12th 2007 6:13PM
Doesn't surprise me. School personnel at the K-12 level are usually at or below the lowest rung of the intelligence ladder. These people aren't exactly known for common sense. They typically rank somewhere between tying their own shoes and not choking to death on their own drool.