Wal-Mart Halts Toy Gun Sales in N.Y.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Thursday suspended sales of toy guns in its stores throughout the state of New York, only hours after Atty. Gen. Eliot Spitzer sued the world’s biggest retailer, accusing it of selling such toys without required safety markings to distinguish them from real weapons.

The toy guns have orange caps on their barrels, as required by federal law, but they don’t have nonremovable orange stripes down the barrel’s length as New York law requires, Spitzer’s lawsuit contends.

Safety experts say the brightly colored markings help police officers distinguish toy guns from real weapons, and that the permanent stripes are important because the plastic barrel caps can fall off or be removed.

“In our continued efforts to be a responsible retailer, we have made the decision to suspend sales of all toy cap guns in New York,” the Bentonville, Ark.-based retailer said. “This decision is based on the belief by the attorney general that some of the toy cap guns we are selling do not comply with the law.”

Wal-Mart, which has 52 stores in New York, said it relies on the suppliers of their toys to deliver products that comply with local laws.

It was a fast reaction from the retailer, which only last week suspended sales of real guns in its 118 California stores after a state investigation found hundreds of violations of state firearms laws.

California Atty. Gen. Bill Lockyer said this week that his office is weighing criminal charges against the retail giant for such violations as selling guns to convicted felons.

The New York lawsuit, filed March 31 in state Supreme Court in Manhattan, seeks to prohibit Wal-Mart from selling toy weapons that violate state law and asks for monetary penalties against the company. It also alleges that Wal-Mart sold toy guns colored aluminum and black, which may be mistaken for actual firearms.

The suit also seeks penalties that could amount to tens of millions of dollars.

“We’re trying to protect children and we’re trying to put law enforcement officers in the position to make the right decision,” Spitzer said.

Since 1997 at least four people, two teens and two adults, brandishing look-alike guns have been fatally shot by police in New York because the officers believed they had real firearms.

If the state prevails, it could seek damages equal to $1,000 for each illegal toy gun sold since April 1, 1997.

Wal-Mart has sold more than 42,000 toy guns in the state during the last 2 1/2 years, Spitzer said.

Wal-Mart shares rose 88 cents Thursday to $54.58 on the New York Stock Exchange.