Teen Fighting for Life After Playing Senior Assassin

Weeks from graduation, a Texas teenager is fighting for his life after a lighthearted game of Senior Assassin took a tragic turn. High school seniors commonly take part in a game of chase, where the last one standing wins. In this case, 17-year-old Isaac Leal, a baseball star at South Grand Prairie High School, was taking part in a water gun fight where players try to take out their targets, while also protecting themselves. The game wasn't authorized by the school, per KTVT. Isaac's mother, Raquel Vazquez, says her son had hopped on the back of a Jeep driven by a girl, who reached high speeds before hitting a dip in the road. That's when Isaac fell off and hit his head, Vazquez tells KXAS.

The April 20 incident was partly captured on cellphone and security video, per NBC News. Isaac's parents are calling for a criminal investigation. "I understand accidents happen, but this was not an accident," Vazquez says, per KTVT. All game participants were required to download an app "so, that way, they can tell you what location each person is at," says Isaac's father, Jose Leal, per the outlet. Isaac reportedly jumped on the back of the Jeep as it was pulling out of a driveway in Arlington. Jose Leal says the female driver made six turns over the five minutes during which Isaac was "holding on for his life." He fell from the back bumper and was hospitalized in critical condition. His mom describes him as in a "vegetable state," per KXAS.

Arlington police weren't dispatched to the scene and say it was only on May 3 that officers learned Isaac's injuries stemmed from a traffic incident. Police say an investigation is underway and that the current evidence indicates Isaac "was hanging out the back of the vehicle when the accident occurred." Elsewhere, authorities have advised high schoolers not to play Senior Assassin or similar games due to the risk of tragic outcomes, including in cases where police officers or armed citizens might mistake toy guns for the real thing. South Grand Prairie High's principal had warned any "students who engage in this activity on or around school grounds may face disciplinary action," per KTVT. (More Texas stories.)