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CHARLOTTE -- Prosecutors in the Demetrius Montgomery murder trial say he was listening to a song entitled "Murda Man" moments before investigators say he shot and killed the two officers, bringing up an age-old argument of the arts’ effect on behavior.

"It’s based on a very old idea of how art works," said UNC Charlotte philosophy professor Robin James, who has done extensive research in the area of gender and racial politics in popular music.

James says the prosecution's claim is overlooking two important facts -- the idea of fiction and the idea of free will

"People are able to think critically and recognize fiction for what it is," she said.

The Montgomery case isn't the first time rap music has been blamed for crossing over to the real world. And while it cannot be proven that it can inspire someone to commit a crime,
Mothers of Murdered Offspring director Judy Williams says it's not good to just constantly listen to negative things.

James says the issue of arts’ influence on behavior is 2,000 years old, dating back to the age of ancient philosopher Plato, but the modern idea of fiction and free were not around in that time.