I-Team: Lead-Tainted Jewelry
Jenn Rourke
WTMJ-TV, WI
Dangerous lead-based jewelry may finally be yanked from the shelves.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission is proposing the ban. Now a Waukesha County girl’s efforts to get the stuff gone for good are paying off.
Millions of pieces of the jewelry have been recalled in the last few years because of the danger they pose to children.
Children like Jarnell Graham, who died after swallowing a charm that came with his mom’s new pair of Reeboks.
“This is something you would think would come out of a movie, but it’s not,” mom Juwana tells us.
The I-Team found similar jewelry sold in gumball machines, at the dollar store, even at the Wisconsin State Fair. It’s pretty, but poisonous, and some of it is almost 100% lead.
Stories like that inspired Arrowhead High School freshman Michelle Loke to take action. “Once I saw the news program, I decided to do something about it.”
A big something. Two years ago – while still in seventh grade – Michelle drew up a science fair project which, like our investigation, tested dozens of toys, trinkets and jewelry for lead.
“I was very surprised. I thought that some of them would have lead in them, but I was hoping the companies would have put lead free toys in the gumball machines,” Michelle told us.
Michelle found nearly 60% of the jewelry she tested was tainted with the toxic metal. She sent the results to child safety organizations, manufacturers and lawmakers. The project got statewide and national attention. Now in ninth grade, she is seeing her cause pick up steam.
“It feels great to know that, finally, something’s being done to protect people from lead poisoning,” she said.
Last week, the Consumer Product Safety Commission began the process of banning lead in kids jewelry. A ban would allow the commission to punish companies that make and sell jewelry that contains more than .06-percent lead, the same amount allowed in paint.
Michelle is thrilled. “I’m really happy that all my work paid off… It took a long time, but it was worth it.”
But consumers still need to be careful. It could take the commission a year or more to approve the ban. That means the stuff’s still out there. And the same warnings still apply. Warnings some parents never got, but want others to hear loud and clear.
“What you can do is be more cautious about the products you buy. I would want people to know that, because I don’t want anyone else to hurt the way me and his father are hurting,” Juwana Graham sobs.
To give you an idea how serious the Consumer Product Safety Commission now considers this issue – in its entire history, the commission has only banned four other items: Lawn darts, dive sticks, lead in candlewicks, lead in paint.
