Ban on Water Balloons All Wet, Dissidents Say

A group of about 70 residents who live on an island in Westlake Lake have signed a petition that seeks to restore a water balloon fight to the area’s annual Fourth of July boat parade.

The Westlake Management Assn. voted unanimously last month to ban the traditional fight after a college student wearing glasses was struck in the face by a water balloon. The student, whom association members refused to identify, sustained minor facial cuts, said Rod Hansen, association president.

Mary Jacobs, a resident of the island--which is bisected by the Los Angeles-Ventura county line--said the ban is unconstitutional. She said she believes the water balloon thrown at the college student broke her glasses but did not injure her.

Jacobs said some members of the 300 families who live there intend to flout the rule at the boat parade today.

Hansen said the group has hired two off-duty police officers to enforce the ban. Kay Satchell, a member of the association’s board of directors, said the group feared it could be sued by anyone who was injured if it did not enact the rule.