Senior Tag: A naked rite of spring

An Ohio high school student has been charged with disorderly conduct after police caught him playing Senior Tag, allegedly naked.

Senior Tag, which involves getting other students with water guns, is an annual spring ritual at many central Ohio schools, The Columbus Dispatch reported Thursday. Dublin Police Lt. Heinz von Eckartsberg said other students in the area when the 17-year-old was busted were not arrested because they had their clothes on.

As long as they are not breaking the law, we don’t have a problem with it, he said.

A number of schools are trying to put an end to the tradition. Dublin-Coffman High School, where the arrested teen is a student, e-mailed parents this week to warn that playing Senior Tag can get young people into serious trouble.

At another school, Pickerington North, students can break the rules by just talking about the game at school, a student, John Zustra, said.

Von Eckartsberg said police in Dublin have received five calls complaining about students in cars firing water pistols at passersby — and three about naked players. Only one arrest has been made because in other cases students were gone by the time police arrived.