Two local teens said it's function, notoriety and the perception of safety that make fake guns so popular among their peers.
"People are paranoid," said Finesse Washington, a 19-year-old from Warrensville Heights. "Everybody thinks they need a gun to at least walk down the street or just feel safe. So everybody is trying to get a gun or trying to get something that looks like a gun."
Washington said he has a 9mm BB gun because he likes to play with it among friends.
"It's fun to play around with them sometime, if you've got someone else, they have someone too, you shoot at each other," said Ali Chisholm, a 19-year-old from Cleveland Heights.
Chisholm said he also has a 9mm BB gun and a M-14 BB gun.
"That [the M-14] is my favorite one because it is so big," he said.
The teens explained the craze of fake guns as four teens were arrested Sunday night for aggravated menacing involving BB guns, with the orange safety tips removed. Cleveland Police said one of the teens shot at a woman's car at Steelyard Commons.
"One of them [teens] pulled up in a shooting stance, and I did see a weapon," said Natalie Taylor, the victim. "I didn't feel threatened but then once the pellet hit my windshield, that's a whole different level."
Taylor said the pellet did not damage her car.
The City of Cleveland has no restrictions on brandishing fake guns. The City of Ashtabula passed an ordinance last August banning them. Since then, officials there said they have cited two adults and one child. The punishment is a $150 fine.
Currently, there are two state bills, one regulating the look of fake guns, the other banning them, that are sitting stalemate in a House committee. Both bills were introduced last year.
But no one we spoke to believed a ban on fake guns in Cleveland would do any good.
"People will find a way to get what they want," said Washington.
"Banning them may just replace them with other weapons," said Taylor.
