Nerf gun prank ends in criminal charges, injuries during arrest
It started as a teenage prank with a Nerf gun.
It ended with an arrest, a physical takedown by a police officer, an injured head and leg, time in a cell, five criminal charges and a driving offence — and a family wondering how a dumb, online-inspired gag resulted in such severe, real-life consequences for a kid just out of high school.
“I'm just furious,” said the youth's mother. “People need to know about this.”
The 18-year-old and his mother, both residents of Wendover, Ont., want the Ontario Provincial Police to review the conduct of its officers in arresting two teenagers who thought they were merely “having some fun” modelling a TikTok game on Saturday afternoon.
“I want the officer's badge. My son cannot walk right now,” said the woman of the OPP Rockland officer who they say forcibly put her handcuffed son to the ground, resulting in a concussion and an upper leg injury that has left him badly limping.
“They could have de-escalated the situation. Instead they went from zero to 10.”
The young man said he and his friend were returning from fishing near Casselman on Saturday afternoon when they got the idea to mimic an online prank in which foam darts are fired at strangers.
He said they stopped at Walmart and bought a Nerf Jolt, an orange plastic gun that fires foam darts, and retails for $6.49.
“We saw this trend online and thought, `Heh, this would be fun to do',” he said this week.
He said they drove through a Rockland subdivision called Morris Village. He was at the wheel of the Chev Malibu, his friend was firing the darts out the window. He claims several people laughed at the joke — he says only two were actually struck by the darts, which travel only a few metres — but one man took offence. When he turned the vehicle around, he said the man was standing in the middle of the road and threw something hard at his car.
As they were leaving the neighbourhood to return to Wendover, he said they passed an OPP cruiser at a stop sign and the officer asked them to pull over.
Eventually, there were two cruisers on scene, he said. The youth claims he complied with directions from an officer to provide identification and then put his hands behind his back to be handcuffed.
He said one officer seemed upset because his wife was an intended or actual target of the Nerf darts.
He said the officer “swept” his leg and he fell to ground, his face against the dirt. The officer's thumb was then placed on a “pressure point” by his ear, he said.
“I'm yelling at him that I'm not doing anything.”
Both he and the other youth were taken to the OPP detachment and placed in a holding cell for a couple of hours, he said.
He is charged with three counts of assault with a weapon, two counts of criminal harassment and one count of careless driving.
“I think it was extremely excessive,” said the teenager. “They blew it way out of proportion and I'm pretty sure it's because the cop's wife was involved.”
A high school graduate only two weeks ago, he's now worried the charges and any ensuing court case may impede his wish to enlist in the Canadian armed forces.
A spokesman for OPP Rockland said the force couldn't provide details about the arrest because the matter is still under investigation.
Const. Melissa Bouchard said the province's Special Investigations Unit is supposed to be contacted when a person is seriously injured during an arrest, but added this was not done in this case.
She speculated, but wasn't sure, that the officers may not have known the young man was hurt.
She was unable to comment on whether the teenager's conduct at the roadside contributed to him being taken to the ground.
As for the Nerf gun — designed as a toy — the Criminal Code defines a “weapon” very broadly, covering everything from a firearm to a rock or even a cup of hot coffee that could be used to hurt or intimidate someone.
After getting medical attention, the mother said, her son is taking painkillers and anti-inflammatory medication, hobbling around the house and showing signs he was shaken up by the incident.
“He's scared to even go out. He doesn't want to drive anywhere. He's afraid he might be targeted.”
The woman said she is just making a connection with a lawyer to determine how to formally lodge a complaint with the OPP.