Walmart will pay a $16,000 penalty after being caught shipping dangerous toy guns that look exactly like real firearms to New York residents, violating state safety laws and a previous consent order.
Key Takeaways
- Walmart has been sanctioned for shipping at least 9 realistic toy guns to New York addresses through third-party sellers, violating state safety laws.
- The retailer must pay $16,000 in penalties and fees and implement strict policies to prevent future sales of prohibited imitation weapons to New York.
- This violation comes nearly a decade after Walmart agreed to a similar consent order following the fatal shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice.
- Between 2020-2023, investigators found 46 imitation weapons were sold to New York consumers through Walmart’s online platform.
- New York law requires toy guns to be brightly colored or transparent to prevent confusion with real firearms.
NY Attorney General Cracks Down on Dangerous Toy Gun Sales
New York Attorney General Letitia James has taken decisive action against Walmart for shipping realistic-looking toy guns to New York addresses. The retail giant agreed to pay a $14,000 penalty plus $2,000 in fees after an investigation revealed that its online marketplace allowed third-party sellers to ship imitation firearms that violated state safety standards. The investigation discovered that Walmart had shipped at least nine realistic toy guns to New York residents, with a total of 46 prohibited imitation weapons sold through Walmart.com to New York consumers between March 2020 and November 2023.
“Realistic-looking toy guns can put communities in serious danger and that is why they are banned in New York,” said Attorney General James.
History of Toy Gun Regulation in New York
This isn’t Walmart’s first offense. Nearly a decade ago, Walmart and other major retailers agreed to a similar consent order to keep realistic toy guns off shelves in New York. That 2015 agreement came in the wake of the tragic fatal shooting of Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old boy who was holding a pellet gun when police shot him. New York law explicitly prohibits toy guns that resemble real firearms in certain colors and requires imitation weapons to be brightly colored or transparent to prevent dangerous misidentifications by law enforcement or citizens.
“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,” said Attorney General James.
While leftist officials like James frequently focus on cosmetic features when regulating actual firearms, in this case the distinction is critical. Realistic toy guns have been linked to numerous confrontations with law enforcement and have been used in criminal activities across New York State. The regulations exist to protect both civilians and police officers from potentially deadly misunderstandings that could occur when a toy gun is mistaken for a real firearm.
Walmart’s Response and Required Actions
Walmart has not admitted or denied the investigation’s findings, “but has agreed to implement stricter policies to prevent future violations,” said company, In a statement the company “We are committed to complying with all laws, and we have processes in place to ensure products offered for sale by third-party sellers on our marketplace comply with all applicable laws as well.”
As part of the settlement, Walmart must prohibit third-party sellers from selling imitation guns to New York buyers and terminate relationships with sellers who violate this restriction three times. The company will also implement new technological and policy safeguards to prevent the sale of prohibited items to New York addresses. This settlement represents another example of the costly regulatory burden businesses face when operating across multiple states with different legal requirements, though in this case the safety concerns are valid regardless of one’s position on actual firearm regulations.
