As I noted in my September 11, 2008 post, Graco Children’s Products and the Consumer Products Safety Commission[CPSC]had been inexplicably slow in alerting the public about a danger associated with the Graco Simplicity Bassinet. The bassinet’s metal framework created a very real strangulation danger and at least two children had become caught within the framework and died. Graco, after news stories about the product broke, issued a recall on September 11, 2008.
Unfortunately, it appears that Simplicity models are still available for purchase through online services or community resale shops. After the initial recall, investigators for Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan scoured online and secondhand markets for the recalled bassinets. They determined that hundreds of Simplicity models were still available online through eBay or Craigslist. As a result of her investigation, Madigan’s office announced a statewide initiative to identify recalled bassinets available through online markets. Madigan’s office is also helping Illinois residents who purchased the defective bassinets with the refund process.
Madigan has also called upon the CPSC to create a strategy that includes online and secondhand markets when recalling dangerous products.