Mom sues Etsy claiming teething necklace strangled child

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Wednesday, May 8, 2019
Mom sues Etsy after teething necklace strangles child
A California mom is suing Etsy after she says a teething necklace bought from the retailer strangled her son.

A mother says an online retailer is partly to blame for the death of her son who died from a necklace bought on its site.

Back in 2016, Danielle Morin says her child was found dead at a childcare center in Fontana, Calif., after he was strangled due to the necklace tightening around his neck.

Morin says the necklace was bought on Etsy as a gift for her son.

Etsy says any legal claim related to a third-party item must be brought directly against the seller.

Fontana police arrested two day care staff members in December of 2017 in connection to the child's death.

Sagan Marriott and Deborah Jimenez were booked on suspicion of child cruelty with possible death and/or injury and involuntary manslaughter.

In October 2016, 18-month-old Deacon Morin was taken off life support after he was strangled by his necklace while taking a nap at the Marriott Family Childcare facility. It was one of two in-home day cares.

The boy's mother said the staff told her the amber teething necklace Deacon was wearing strangled him in his sleep. But she believed there was more information that they weren't telling her, including who performed CPR on her son.

He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition, but Morin made the decision to remove her son from life support later on.

Fontana police and a spokesperson for social services said they were investigating Deacon's death.

Authorities then arrested Marriot, Jimenez and another staff member, Rebecca Lutz, on suspicion of child endangerment in November 2016.

During the investigation, authorities discovered Marriott and Lutz found Deacon unresponsive, but did not immediately call 911. Instead, they called Jimenez, who authorities said the two women worked for. The women did not call 911 until Jimenez arrived at the facility, according to police.

The Marriott facility was licensed by the state to allow no more than four infants at the place at any time, according to police. But on the day Deacon was found unresponsive, there were six infants and at least 12 other children at the facility.

Authorities continued their investigation into Deacon's death following Marriott's and Jimenez's first arrests.