Dion Von Mays Dies Playing Russian Roulette In San Bernardino, After Other Deaths By Deadly Game

Amid a continuing national gun control debate, a young California man has died during a game of Russian Roulette. It is at least the fourth death that has occurred during the deadly shooting game in the last eight months in the U.S.

Dion Von Mays, 35, shot himself in the head with his own gun at a San Bernardino apartment at 6:30 a.m. Wednesday, Lieutenant Paul Williams of the San Bernardino police told The Huffington Post. Mays was taken to a local hospital and died soon after.

Mays was with two men and one woman at the time, who confirmed to the police that they were playing the potentially lethal game. Russian Roulette is a game of chance where a player places a single bullet in a revolver, spins the cylinder so that no one knows if the bullet is in the firing position, places the gun to his head and pulls the trigger.

Upon arrival to the apartment, police found residue and a pipe suggesting that the group had used a stimulant, possibly meth or cocaine, Williams said.

Because the gun belonged to Mays and because his friends said it was his idea to play the game, none of his friends were arrested. Instead, they were detained for questioning and soon after released.

Other recent Russian Roulette deaths have included Thorin Montgomery, 17, who fatally shot himself during the deadly game in Florida in July. No one was charged because the shot was self-inflicted.

Weeks later, Cole McConoughey, 15, fatally shot himself during the game in Pennsylvania. His 15-year-old friend was charged with homicide for allegedly pulling the trigger.

In December of last year, Kevin Hudgens, 15, fatally shot himself during the game in Arizona, and his 15-year-old friend was charged with possessing a gun as a felon.

Michael McCloskey, 27, fatally shot himself during the game in Alaska in April. His 26-year-old friend was charged with manslaughter because he allegedly handed his friend the bullet and the revolver and twice demonstrated how to play the game. The two had been binge drinking, according to prosecutors.

California State Sen. Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) recently tried, unsuccessfully, to pass a gun control measure and faced racist calls and letters in response.