New York is penalizing Walmart for allowing third-party resellers to sell realistic toy guns on the company’s website.
Selling such toys violates a New York law inspired by police encounters that have resulted in fatalities because the guns, though harmless, look like actual firearms.
New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Tuesday that Walmart will pay a small fine for its actions. Toy guns sold in the state must be “made in bright colors or made entirely of transparent or translucent materials,” with businesses subject to a fine of $1,000 per violation, according to James’s office.
“Realistic-looking toy guns can put communities in serious danger and that is why they are banned in New York,” James said in a statement. “Walmart failed to prevent its third-party sellers from selling realistic-looking toy guns to New York addresses, violating our laws and putting people at risk. The ban on realistic-looking toy guns is meant to keep New Yorkers safe and my office will not hesitate to hold any business that violates that law accountable.”
Walmart shipped at least nine realistic-looking toy guns sold by third-party sellers to New York City, Westchester County, and western New York, according to James’s office. It also found that consumers purchased at least 46 imitation weapons that violate the law between March 2020 and November 2023.
Under the settlement between New York and Walmart, Walmart must pay $14,000 in penalties and $2,000 in fees.
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The law was enacted in 2022 with the idea of reducing violence in situations in which police do not know if a gun is real or not. The death of 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014 at the hands of the police came when he drew a fake gun on police officers, who then shot and killed him.
“Restricting these realistic-looking devices will ensure misleading and potentially dangerous devices are off our streets, keeping kids, law enforcement, and all New Yorkers safe,” Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) said when the bill was signed.
