Franklin police responded to a report of a naked man with a gun near Highway 100 and South Whitnall Edge Road Monday morning, only to discover high school seniors playing a game called "Paranoia."
Officers conducted a high-risk traffic stop and determined the individuals involved were students from Franklin High School.
Franklin Police Officer Gary Wallace said the initial call raised immediate concern.
"To us, that sets off a lot of alarm bells," Wallace said.
Multiple officers were dispatched to what could have been a dangerous situation.
"Our thoughts immediately went to the worst," Wallace said.
As officers responded, the nature of the call began to shift.
Watch: What's 'Paranoia'? Franklin Police and Oak Creek senior explain game that is causing panic
"As we were responding, I think people started to come to the realization that it's that time of year and we have had this happen before," Wallace said.
One person was arrested for disorderly conduct. Wallace described the moment officers realized there was no actual threat.
"There was certainly a sense of relief when we realized it wasn't an actual firearm or an emotionally disturbed person. But there was also some frustration," Wallace said.
Paranoia — also called Water Wars — is a game played by high school seniors across the country each spring. Players are divided into teams and use water guns to eliminate opponents.
Police said it is their understanding that the students have a rule encouraging players to be naked or shirtless during the game.
Wallace said he wants students to enjoy the tradition, but not at the expense of public safety.
"We want people to have fun, but we can't be putting people at risk," Wallace said.
Wallace also expressed concern about the potential consequences for the students involved.
"This is a senior game, I would really hate to see something happen that would interfere with a scholarship or enrollment," Wallace said.
TMJ4 spoke with Drew Schneble. He says he has seen multiple naked people running around in his neighborhood in the past few days.
"It was right in the intersection off my house, and I saw two naked dudes—like for sure saw them—and they were standing in the middle of the road," Schneble said.
Franklin police were also called to the area of 42nd Street and Forest Hill Avenue, not far from Franklin High School, after a neighbor reported seeing multiple shirtless people outside threatening to kill each other.
TMJ4 spoke with Oak Creek senior Logan Bohn, who said multiple seniors from Oak Creek were outside his home Monday morning trying to eliminate him from the game.
"Some people come out here and be reckless and loud and stuff like that," Bohn said.
Bohn said he took steps to address the disruption to his neighborhood.
"I went and apologized to most of my neighbors and gave them a run-down of what was happening," Bohn said.
When asked whether he and his friends planned to change how they play the game after police were called multiple times, Bohn said they would.
"Probably, we're probably going to take it down a notch," Bohn said.
The Franklin School District sent this statement, saying in part:
"This activity is strictly prohibited on school property. Students and families should be aware that participation that leads to police involvement could carry legal consequences which impact a student’s eligibility for school athletics and activities under the Athletics & Activities Co-Curricular Code of Conduct."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
