PEXELS Water guns and kids

Playing with water guns is not always as innocent or safe an activity as it once was.

A teenager was shot in the arm by an off-duty officer earlier this year in Florida while he was playing a game with a realistic-looking water gun. Another teen was shot in South Carolina in 2024 while playing with a water gun — shot by other teenagers who reportedly thought he had a real weapon.

In 2024 in Maryland, five teenagers were shot during a water gun fight where another teen brought a real weapon. One of those victims was critically injured.

In 2022 in Mississippi’s Capital of Jackson, a 15-year-old was killed when he and two other teens wore ski masks and held splat (water) guns and attempted to play a joke on an unsuspecting friend at his home. The friend pointed a real gun at them and shot the 15-year-old in the chest. The shooting, ruled justified, proved fatal. Police said two toy assault rifles and one real handgun were found in the teens’ vehicle.

Brookhaven Police Chief Kenneth Collins said he has already had to deal with one instance this summer when a person with a real weapon almost responded with deadly force in a similar situation.

“Watch your kids with these splat guns, these water guns,” Collins said. “They’re wearing masks, hanging out car windows, squirting unsuspecting people. They’re playing a game where they can get hurt.”

“I’m warning parents and guardians, because they’re going to splat somebody who doesn’t want to get wet, and they’re going to come out with a real gun,” he said. “You’re playing with danger.”