Even toy guns can get Walmart in trouble in New York. Attorney General Letitia James says the retail giant is paying a fine for shipping “realistic-looking” toy guns to the state.

Ms. James says Walmart shipped nine toy guns sold by third-party sellers on its online store to addresses in New York, including New York City, Westchester, and Western New York.

New York law prohibits retailers from selling or shipping toy guns that are black, dark blue, silver, or aluminum-colored and look like real guns. A picture released by the attorney general’s office of one of the toy guns shows it is silver with black parts but also has a bright orange tip and an orange trigger.

“Realistic-looking toy guns can put communities in serious danger and that is why they are banned in New York,” Ms. James says, adding that Walmart was “putting people at risk” by shipping the playthings to the Empire State.

There have been at least 63 shootings in New York in the past 30 years that resulted from imitation weapons being mistaken for real firearms, according to state lawmakers. Eight of those shootings were fatal.

Businesses that sell or distribute realistic-looking toy guns in New York can be fined up to $1,000 per violation. As part of a settlement, Walmart agreed to pay $16,000 in penalties and fees and block all of its third-party sellers from selling imitation toy guns to New York residents.

“My office will not hesitate to hold any business that violates that law accountable,” Ms. James says.

New York has a long history of going after imitation weapon sales. In 2015, it settled a lawsuit against Walmart, K-Mart, Sears, and Amazon for $300,000 after an investigation found the retailers sold 6,429 prohibited toy guns to New York consumers.

Ms. James is asking consumers to rat-out any retailer still selling realistic-looking guns.