A 12-year-old boy, carrying a homemade wooden sword and toy gun painted for a Halloween costume, walks into his downtown neighbourhood park to meet a friend.

They're going to record a video for a school project and he is pacing, waiting for the friend to come up over a hill at Shamrock Park, near Walnut and Augusta streets.

What he doesn't know is that a witness has called police, worried the boy, who despite his age stands six-feet tall, is carrying a large knife and handgun.

Not knowing who they are approaching, police come upon him with a gun and Taser drawn (the gun is not pointed) around 4 p.m. Tuesday. They shout at him to "drop it." He does.

To the Hamilton Police Service, the officers perceived a real threat and acted well within their training.

To the boy's family, the ordeal was terrifying. They're questioning the actions of the officers and the way police handled the fallout.

The boy's father, David Pace-Bonello, called the incident "disappointing."

He acknowledged the legitimate public safety concern, but questioned the actions of the officers, including why his son was allegedly approached from behind with many other kids in the park. His son did not hear the officers identify themselves as police.

But police spokesperson Const. Steve Welton said the officers were clearly following their use-of-force training.

"The officers did nothing wrong," he said.

Reports of the incident spread on social media, with many admonishing police for drawing weapons on a child playing with a "Nerf" gun. Some called it "disgusting" and many expressed concern for the boy.

But Welton said many people were jumping to conclusions.

According to police, the witness called 911 to report what appeared to be a 15- or 16- year-old wandering around with a knife and gun.

The caller said the gun may be plastic, but couldn't tell. The "gun" was described as "something similar to what a police officer uses," and the knife as being long "maybe a foot" and still in a case, Welton said.

When officers located the boy, they saw the "gun" and the officers told him to drop it. He complied and was searched before he called his dad.

"Police recognize that those involved in incidents of this nature may not understand fully the reasons at the time," Welton said. "But know police responded in accordance with their training."

No one was physically injured; however, the boy's parents took him to hospital to be assessed because of the psychological trauma.

Pace-Bonello claims the police's attitude toward his family afterward was dismissive and hostile, with him being forcibly removed from the police station and threatened with a Taser himself when he went looking for answers and refused to leave.

He knows he got overly emotional but said calm compassion would have gone a long way.

"To me it really felt like re-victimization," Pace-Bonello said, adding no support was offered for his son.

"He's a very sensitive gentle child. And he may be six feet tall but he is a 12-year-old boy."

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Police met with the boy's mother Wednesday, but while the conversation was more productive, the family still believes the incident wasn't handled well and is considering filing a formal complaint.

They would like to see police implement a better post-incident process, such as offering victim's services and making time to explain what happened to the family.

Police say the incident stands as a good reminder about the dangers of carrying replica weapons.