Can you throw snowballs at people if they don’t want you to?

1. The legal landscape is patchwork, not uniform

Municipal codes in many U.S. towns specifically prohibit throwing snowballs at people, vehicles, buildings, or public property, meaning the answer depends on local law rather than a single national rule ^{[1] [6]}. Examples cited across reporting include Colorado towns that still list “snowballs” among banned projectiles and multiple Rhode Island communities that have tucked snowball prohibitions into disorderly-conduct ordinances ^{[1] [3]}. Reliable summaries caution that where there is no explicit snowball rule, more general laws against throwing “stones or other missiles” will often be used to reach the same result ^{[3] [2]}.

2. Non-consensual snowballs can be treated as assault or battery

Legal analysts and lay reporting alike point out that throwing anything at a non-consenting person can be classified as an act of assault or battery if it is harmful or offensive; courts and prosecutors look at intent and injury rather than the object alone ^{[2] [7]}. Several sources note that if a snowball contains hard ice or concealed debris and causes injury, traditional criminal charges are much more likely to stick and carry meaningful penalties ^{[8] [7]}.

3. Public-safety ordinances and disorderly-conduct catch most snowball cases

Municipalities frequently place snowball bans within disorderly-conduct or public-safety rules to deter malicious targeting and incidental harm; Rhode Island towns and places like Wausau, Wisconsin, have used these ordinances to justify fines or to warn residents even if prosecutions are rare ^{[3] [4]}. Reporting shows officials often frame such laws as aimed at preventing malicious acts—bullying-style attacks or throwing from vehicles—not to stop kids playing consensually in private yards ^{[3] [4]}.

4. Enforcement is inconsistent; prosecution often depends on complaints and consequences

Multiple local stories reveal that police rarely patrol for snowball fights and that citations are uncommon absent complaints or injury, yet authorities reserve the right to act if someone is targeted or hurt ^{[4] [7]}. In some towns with explicit bans the ordinance does not apply on private property, underscoring that location and context influence whether a throw becomes a punishable offense ^{[4] [5]}.

5. Practical rule: consent, context, and consequence decide legality

Taken together, the reporting supports a simple, practical rule: throwing a snowball at someone who does not want it risks civil or criminal consequences, especially if it causes harm, targets a non-participant, involves a vehicle, or violates a local ordinance; consensual, non-damaging play among participants is far less likely to attract legal trouble ^{[2] [8] [6]}. Where certainty matters, local municipal codes and state law should be checked because communities vary—some explicitly list snowballs as forbidden, while others prosecute under general assault or missile-throwing statutes ^{[1] [3]}.

6. Competing viewpoints and hidden agendas in reporting

Coverage ranges from bemused accounts of “strange” or outdated ordinances to sober warnings about safety and liability; some sources emphasize rare enforcement and community context to downplay alarm, while others highlight the statutes to warn potential throwers—readers should note that legal-advocacy outlets and municipal press statements may have motives to either relax or justify enforcement ^{[4] [9]}. Reporting does not settle every jurisdictional detail, and where no source explicitly covers a particular city or state, this analysis does not assert its laws one way or the other ^[9].