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Sleuths Find Asbestos in CSI Toy

CBS doesn't respond to consumer groups' warning

December 14, 2007
It is one of the most popular toys on children's wish lists this holiday season, but independent laboratory tests show the "CSI: Crime Scene InvestigationT Fingerprint Examination Kit" contains asbestos.

The Asbestos Disease Awareness Organization (ADAO) and Public Justice, a Washington, D.C. public-interest law firm, are demanding that companies involved in the distribution of the toy protect children and other customers from exposure to the substance, which has been linked to fatal lung cancer and other serious diseases. The toy is made in China.

In a letter to CBS, the toy's licensor; Planet Toys of New York City, the toy's distributor; and retailers selling the product, Public Justice Executive Director Arthur Bryant said ADAO, a California-based victims' advocacy group, wants a meeting "as quickly as possible" to discuss how the companies are going to protect children and other consumers from exposure to asbestos-contaminated toy fingerprint powder in the kit.

The letter raises the possibility of an immediate recall, refunds for customers, and a plan for the safe disposal of the asbestos-tainted powder.

"It is simply unacceptable to have asbestos in toys," said Linda Reinstein, ADAO's Executive Director and Co-Founder. "Prevention is the only cure."

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ADAO commissioned independent, government-certified laboratories to examine various consumer products, including the popular CSI kit, and in late November, the organization reported that tests had detected tremolite - a deadly form of asbestos - in some of the finely ground powders in the kit. The toy kits are licensed by CBS - the network that airs the popular "CSI" series - but they are manufactured in China, where safety standards are lax.

Despite publicity about the findings, Public Justice noted that the toys are still widely available to consumers, much to ADAO's dismay.

"Potentially millions of households, and especially children, have been exposed to the fingerprint powder," wrote Bryant. "And because the product is already in powder form - and intended to be blown or dusted away by children searching for fingerprints - any asbestos contaminant is almost certain to be inhaled and widely disseminated."

The dangers of asbestos exposure have been well documented by scientists, doctors and environmentalists. The tiny fibers are easily inhaled and when drawn into the lungs, they cannot be coughed up or surgically removed.

The letter says the problem can be solved without litigation, but that "ADAO will be forced to take alternative steps" if the addressees do not respond immediately.

"Immediate action is needed to prevent further potential exposure to a deadly toxin," Bryant wrote. "We are eager to work with you to avoid .disaster, but we must act quickly."

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