Water guns banned, handguns allowed on streets outside RNC

Don’t make plans to pack a Super Soaker while walking the streets outside the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.

That, legally owned gun, however, is just fine.

Strict rules are in place banning water guns as well as BB and paintball guns, aluminum cans, glass bottles and tennis balls from downtown Cleveland, according to US News and World Report. However, actual guns will be allowed in public areas surrounding the 1.7-mile event zone.

"That's what we have to abide by: state law, open carry," city spokesman Dan Williams told US News and World Report.

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Ohio has loose open carry laws, that some groups look to exploit.

"Now you've got Westboro Baptist in the mix, the KKK and David Duke, you've got anarchist groups showing up, Black Panthers, Black Lives Matter, communist groups showing up – you're talking about, for lack of better words, 'The Purge' here," Tim Selaty, director of operations for Citizens for Trump, a coalition representing other groups including bikers and truckers, told US News and World Report.

However, only Secret Service and authorized law enforcement personnel will be allowed to carry guns inside the event at the Quicken Loans Arena.

Other items specifically banned include containers of bodily fluids, gas masks and umbrellas with metal tips.

The 3.5-square mile event zone in Cleveland was reduced to 1.7 square miles, which makes a number of parks now available to groups for rallies.

The ban is not unlike other conventions. In 2012, water guns were also banned from the streets surrounding the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida. However, handguns were allowed.

Cox Media Group