Boy Toy: Two-Year-Old Boy Climbs Into Claw Machine

Customers interested in using a claw machine to secure a candy or prize were a bit surprised in Perth, Australian to find Cohen Stone, 2, staring back at them from inside the machine. Stone had climbed through the hatch of the machine in search of candy and become trapped. The picture with the story below makes the read worth it.

His mother Kyra had to wait for a locksmith to arrive to free the boy. It does not appear that anyone tried to simply use the grabber claw.

One would think that such an attractive nuisance would have been designed to prevent child explorers like Stone. However, this is not the first time such an accident has occurred (here and here). Here is a video of such a case.

This strikes me as an obvious design flaw in these machines and a solid case for attractive nuisance. The Restatement Second Section 339 states five elements, including (1) the place where the condition exists is one on which the possessor knows or has reason to know that children are likely to trespass; (2) the condition is one of which the possessor knows or has reason to know and which he realizes or should realize will involve an unreasonable risk of death or serious bodily harm to such children, (3) the children, because of their youth, do not discover the condition or realize the risk involved in inter-meddling with it or in coming within the area made dangerous by it; (4) the utility to the possessor of maintaining the condition and the burden of eliminating the danger are slight as compared with the risk to children involved, and (5) the possessor fails to exercise reasonable care to eliminate the danger or otherwise to protect the children

The Stones appear content, however, to have left with a £30 voucher.

For the full story, click here.