Cops: Gun-Shaped iPhone Case Is a Very Bad Idea

Police departments don't usually weigh in on tech accessories, unless they happen to be dead ringers for handguns. The NYPD and other departments have been issuing public warnings in recent weeks about iPhone cases designed to look like weapons, reports CNNMoney and the New York Times. “This cell phone case is a terrible idea,” says the New Jersey State Police in a Facebook post. “Officers do not have the luxury of time when making split-second decisions while interacting with the public.”

Today, Sen. Chuck Schumer joined in with a warning to Amazon, eBay, and other online merchants to stop selling the cases, notes the Times. Schumer says federal law requires fake guns to have an orange mark on their barrel to identify them as such, and the cases don't comply. As a result, he plans to work with US customs officials to try to block them from being imported into the country. (More smartphones stories.)