The family of sisters Ryeley Beatty, 3, and Brooklyn, 2, are suing Babies R Us and Baby Cache Inc. for wrongful death. The two toddlers died from asphyxiation after a 124-pound dresser fell on them in their home.
According to the furniture defect case, the store sold the dresser, which was a floor model, at a discounted price. The plaintiffs contend that the product did not come with the proper warning labels or instructions and lacked an anchoring device that should have kept it from tipping over.
Per the wrongful death lawsuit, the dresser did not comply with American Society for Testing and Materials standards, including the requirement that they stay upright when opened and 50 pounds is applied to the front of it, such as when a small child tries to climb a dresser. This furniture item should also ideally with a label warning that the dresser is at risk of tipping over or an anchoring strap, which this one lacked.
The dresser tipped over while the girls were sitting on the bottom of one open dresser drawer. Their father, who knew that they where they were, was in the bathroom when he heard the dresser fall.
Product makers know that they need to include the proper warnings and any necessary safety devices with their consumer goods. Ideally, manufacturers would make products that were completely safe for use and not an injury risk at all, but unfortunately, that is not a reality. defective products, including toys, nursery items, and furniture, continue to cause injury and devastation to children and their families.
CBS News reports that a Consumer Product Safety Commission study from last fall found that between 2000 and 2013, there have been 430 fatalities in the US involving furniture that fell on the victims. 84% of those who died were young children. Tens of thousands have been treated in hospitals for injuries they sustained in accidents involving falling furniture.
Boston product defect claims may be brought against a manufacturer, seller, retailer, or distributor. Cases can be made for items with a flawed product design, a defect that occurred in the product occurred during manufacturing, or due to marketing defects. Massachusetts products liability claims for negligence, misrepresentation, and breach of warranty can be filed related to these defects.
Manufacturers and sellers in this state are held to strict liability standards. This means that even if a product was made and marketed correctly, if someone still got hurt due to a malfunction, the victim and his/her family could sue for Boston personal injury or Massachusetts wrongful death.
You want to speak with a Boston defective furniture lawyer who can help you explore your legal options.
Babies R Us, furniture maker sued in sisters’ dresser deaths, Boston Herald, February 10, 2015
Babies R Us, furniture maker sued over toddler deaths, CBS News, February 10, 2015
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