10,000 apply for job as human paintball target
10,000 people reportedly applied for a job as a human paintball target advertised in the U.K. Getty Images

KEY POINTS

  • The LAPD has received 80 paintball shooting reports this year
  • 75 of those reports occurred in South Los Angeles
  • Paintball pellets can cause serious soft tissue damage to victims

Authorities in Los Angeles are concerned about the rise of paintball shootings in the city, fearing that the violent trend may lead to more injuries to unsuspecting victims.

The Los Angeles Police Department said Wednesday, September 2, that they have received 80 paintball-related shootings in the city this year, including 75 reported incidents in South Los Angeles. Suspects often record while committing the shootings and upload it to social media, police added.

“Paintball guns can look like real assault rifles and have the capacity to shoot bullets at a speed of 300 feet per second,” the LAPD said in a news release. “Paintball guns can cause serious soft tissue damage even if the person is wearing clothing over the area.”

Paintball
A stairwell collapsed at an indoor paintball course in Barrio Logan, San Diego. In this photo, Jake Gautney plays a new paintball game by JAKKS Pacific, Inc. at the Toy Industry Association & Toy Wishes Holiday Preview show in New York City, Oct. 5, 2004. Getty Images/ Spencer Platt

LAPD Captain Scott Williams told Fox 11 that the pandemic caused by COVID-19 may have something to do why people are starting to go out to the streets and shooting bystanders for fun.

“I hate to blame things on COVID but let’s just be honest. People have been cooped up in their homes for a long time without an outlet for entertainment or to get energy out and this is something people decided to do,” said Williams.

To make things worse, Williams added that reports LAPD has been receiving is usually “generated as a person with a gun.” This can put the person in a bad situation, considering that a responding officer could mistake the faux rifle “for a real weapon.”

“An officer will encounter a young person armed with one of these realistic-looking paintball guns and be forced to make a split-second life or death decision,” Williams told CBS Los Angeles.

Ashtann Lewis was one of the many victims of this fad when she was shot in front of her friends last week, the outlet added. She recalled the shooting drawing out a gun and started firing.

“I didn’t even know I was hit with a paintball gun. I thought I was shot. I literally thought I was going to die,” said Lewis.

The encounter left her with three holes on the side of her leg and one in the back, said Fox News.

Police said they have made eight arrests last week and that using a paintball gun to shoot other people is a felony.

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