Guns are being carried on the streets of Boston every day - mostly by children and teens. While these guns are considered toy guns, police say they can be just as deadly - like in the widely publicized case of 12-year-old Tamir Rice, who was shot and killed by police in Cleveland while carrying what turned out to be a replica.
"They look very real, and for an officer to come up on the scene - and especially in the dark - to see this item for a split second, you have no idea whether or not this item is real," said Boston Police Dep. Supt. Joseph Harris.
In fact, in South Boston Tuesday night, police say they were called to Sweeney Playground for a person with a gun. They found four young men passing around a black handgun. The men ran before one of them pulled it from his waistband, eventually dropping it to the ground, where police discovered it wasn't real.
"It couldn't shoot somebody, but if a kid has that in their waistband, if they pull that out, if they flash that, the death won't be a game," said Rev. Mark Scott, an associate pastor with the Azusa Christian Community. "It will be real."
Rev. Scott was one of several clergy members who joined with community leaders and parents Thursday to call on the community to help get these guns off the streets.
"We have to do our role as parents, as guardians, to help our children understand that although you may want to play with this, here are the consequences," explained Massachusetts Sen. Linda Dorcena-Forry.
"For our kids to be putting their lives on the line for toy is just heart-breaking, and we think it's so important for parents to recognize that they're putting their kids at risk," said concerned mother Jacqueline Rivers.
