“Senior assassin game”: Police body camera shows officers responding to a call that turned out to be a high school senior with a water gun

A popular high school tradition in Massachusetts has prompted a new warning from Stoneham police after officers responded to a frightening 911 call about a person with a gun, only to discover that the suspect was a high school senior playing a water-gun game before graduation.

CBS Boston reporter Kristina Rex reported that the incident unfolded Monday morning on Gerry Street in Stoneham, where a caller told police there was someone outside the home who appeared to be armed and waiting to ambush another person.

The call sounded serious, and police treated it that way. But when officers arrived, body camera video showed the situation was not an attempted armed attack. It was a Stoneham High School senior holding what turned out to be a water gun as part of the game commonly known as “senior assassin.”

A 911 Call That Sounded Like A Real Threat

Rex reported that the call came in as the kind of emergency that gives police little room to assume the best. The caller told dispatchers, “I have a gentleman outside my house hiding with a gun,” adding that it looked like the person was “about to ambush somebody.”

The caller also gave a description, saying the person was wearing a black hoodie and gray sweatpants and had a gun in his right hand.

Officers arrived shortly after 7 a.m. and found someone matching that description. According to Rex, body camera video showed police approaching the student with guns drawn for a moment before ordering him to put his hands up and get on the ground.

The student complied with officers’ commands and was handcuffed while police worked out what was happening. Once they had him detained, the explanation came quickly: he was not carrying a real gun, but a water gun used in the senior class game.

“It’s a senior assassin water gun for the senior class,” the student told officers, according to the body camera footage cited in Rex’s report.

That may sound harmless after the fact, but it is easy to understand why the caller and responding officers did not treat it that way in the moment. A person hiding near a house with something that looks like a gun is not a situation where police can simply assume it is a toy.

How The Game Works

Rex reported that students said the Stoneham High School game began on April 29, with nearly 80 students taking part and a prize pot of about $800.

Senior Sophia Blessing explained to WBZ-TV that each player gets a target and has to eliminate that person by spraying them with a water gun. The catch is that nobody knows who is targeting them, so the game turns into a kind of moving ambush contest outside of school property.

“Basically, everybody gets a target, and you have to get them but nobody knows who has you,” Blessing told Rex. “And you just keep playing until there’s one person left and whoever wins, wins all the money that gets put into the game.”

Blessing said she had recently gotten her own target by hiding near another student’s home and waiting by the bushes near the student’s car. That kind of tactic may be normal within the game, but it can look very different to neighbors who do not know what is going on.

That is the problem police are trying to get across. A game built around hiding, waiting and surprising people can create real alarm when it unfolds in a neighborhood where bystanders see only part of the situation.

Police Warn That Toy Guns Must Look Like Toys

Rex said Stoneham police issued the warning because this is not the first time “senior assassin” has caused confusion. Police in the area reportedly issued a similar warning last year, and they are now asking students to make sure any water guns used in the game clearly look like toys.

That point matters because the Monday incident could have gone much worse. Officers responding to a report of a gun cannot immediately know whether an object is a toy, a realistic replica or an actual weapon.

In the body camera footage, an officer could be heard describing the call as one involving “a guy with a gun hiding in the bushes,” which is exactly the kind of report that puts everyone on edge before officers even arrive.

Stoneham Police Chief James O’Connor said in a statement that the department has already been working with Stoneham Public Schools to address the issue with students and families. He said the high school principal had sent a letter home, and he credited the strong communication between the school district and the police department.

O’Connor also praised the officers who responded, saying their calm approach helped prevent a dangerous misunderstanding from becoming something worse.

“What could have been a potentially dangerous misunderstanding was quickly sorted out by well-trained professionals,” O’Connor said, according to Rex’s report.

The Student Was Released, But The Lesson Remains

The student was not seriously punished in the incident and was released after police confirmed what had happened. Rex reported that when officers had him call his mother, her first question was not about the police response, but about the game.

“Did you get him?” she asked, referring to the student’s target.

“I got caught by the cops,” her son replied.

The exchange is almost funny in hindsight, but only because nobody was hurt. It also shows how differently students and adults may view the same situation. To students, the game may feel like a harmless rite of passage before graduation. To a neighbor watching someone hide outside with what appears to be a gun, it may look like a crime in progress.

That gap between intent and perception is the entire issue. A water gun can be a toy, but if it looks like a pistol and is carried in a way that alarms others, the situation can escalate before anyone has time to explain.

A Community Tradition With Real-World Risks

Rex reported that students said “senior assassin” takes place off school property, but that does not mean it is free from consequences. Police still respond to 911 calls, neighbors still react to what they see, and students can still be placed in situations that look far more dangerous than they are.

One neighbor told WBZ-TV she was grateful the incident turned out to be only a game, saying that if it had been a real gun, she would not have known what to do.

That is a reasonable reaction. Communities are already sensitive to reports of guns near homes or schools, and any game that involves hidden players and realistic-looking objects can create confusion fast.

The solution does not have to be complicated, but it does require students to think beyond the rules of the game. Brightly colored water guns, clear communication with parents, and avoiding behavior that resembles stalking or ambushing strangers’ homes would reduce the chances of another police response.

Police Hope The Incident Becomes A Warning

Rex said Stoneham police are hoping the situation becomes a learning opportunity, not only for Stoneham students but for other communities where seniors may be playing similar games before graduation.

Chief O’Connor said police will continue working with school officials and families, while also urging students to understand that something meant as a prank or competition can look very serious to someone outside the game.

That is the most practical takeaway. “Senior assassin” may be familiar to students, but it is not familiar to every neighbor, every passerby or every officer responding to a gun call.

In this case, the student followed police commands, officers quickly recognized what was happening, and nobody was injured. The next case may not be so forgiving if students use realistic-looking water guns or hide in ways that make bystanders believe they are witnessing an armed threat.

For now, Stoneham police are not saying students cannot have fun before graduation. They are saying the fun needs to be clearly recognizable as a game before someone calls 911 and officers arrive expecting something much more dangerous.