"Marines take risk with deadly trust-building game"

Cpl. Patrick Malone was relaxing on his bunk at an Iraqi combat base when a direct superior interrupted his late night movie.

It was time for a game Marines sometimes play to build confidence in colleagues: Point a gun at a comrade and ask, "Do you trust me?".

Cpl. Mathew Nelson raised his weapon -- and the 9mm pistol went off, striking Malone in the head. The higher-ranking Marine rushed to the wounded man's side and tried to perform CPR, but Malone was mortally wounded.

The game, which has cropped up in barracks across Iraq and Afghanistan, is supposed to make a serviceman feel comfortable enough with a comrade that he would stare into the other Marine's gun barrel. But it violates the military's basic weapon-saftey rules.

On Thursday, Nelson pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and seven counts of reckless endangerment for the shooting at Combat Outpost Viking in Anbar province.

Nelson was sentenced Thursday to eight years in Camp Lejeune's bring, demoted to the lowest rank in the Marines and given a bad-conduct discharge.

Malone's father stated "I can't believe the Marines, these professional soldiers, are playing these games." Nelson is 25 and Malone is 21 years of age.


*Salute* Cpl. Patrick Malone *moment of silence*