Hennepin County, Minnesota — A Wisconsin family has filed a lawsuit against Target, alleging the retailer failed to warn consumers about the dangers of a children’s water bead product after their 10-month-old daughter died from swallowing one of the tiny expanding beads.
Taylor and Tyler Bethard filed the lawsuit this week in Hennepin County, claiming their daughter, Esther “Jo” Bethard, died in 2023 after ingesting a water bead from a product previously sold exclusively at Target.
The lawsuit also names Buffalo Games LLC, the manufacturer of the Chuckle & Roar water bead activity kit.
Lawsuit Claims Product Was Dangerous for Young Children
According to the complaint, the Bethards purchased the Chuckle & Roar Ultimate Water Beads Activity Kit in the spring of 2022 for their older children and never intended for their infant daughter to play with it.
The lawsuit states that water beads are made from highly absorbent polymers that can expand to roughly 100 times their original size after coming into contact with water.
Because of their colorful appearance and rapid expansion, safety experts have warned that the products can pose serious risks if swallowed by young children.
According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), more than 6,300 water bead ingestion injuries required emergency department treatment nationwide between 2017 and 2022.
Infant Died After Swallowing a Single Water Bead
Court filings state that on July 7, 2023, Taylor Bethard found 10-month-old Esther Jo unresponsive in her crib after the baby experienced symptoms resembling a stomach illness overnight.
Medical examiners later determined that the infant’s death resulted from swallowing a single water bead, according to the lawsuit.
The Bethards argue that they had no reason to believe the product presented such a severe danger because they were never warned after purchasing it.
Target Stopped Selling Product Before Child’s Death
According to court records referenced in the lawsuit, Target and Buffalo Games agreed to remove the product from store shelves in November 2022, months before Esther Jo’s death.
The filing alleges the decision came after the manufacturer learned that another infant had required surgery after swallowing a water bead from the same product.
Internal communications cited in the lawsuit reportedly described the decision as a “safety removal.”
The Bethards claim that although sales stopped, customers who had already purchased the product were never directly warned about the potential hazard.
Attorney Daniel Mann, who represents the family, argued that additional action should have been taken.
“With all this information Target didn’t do anything to reach out to the family or other consumers to let them know about this problem,” Mann said. “I think 10/10 people would say Target had a responsibility to do more than what they did, which was nothing.”
Target Responds as Water Bead Safety Debate Continues
Target has declined to comment directly on the ongoing litigation but released a statement expressing sympathy for the family.
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“We extend our deepest sympathies to those affected by this tragedy, and we worked closely with the manufacturer of the product at the time the incident occurred.”
The company has previously denied allegations that it knowingly failed to warn customers about extraordinary dangers associated with the product.
Following Esther Jo’s death, the Consumer Product Safety Commission recalled more than 52,000 Chuckle & Roar Ultimate Water Beads Activity Kits in September 2023.
Major retailers, including Target, Walmart and Amazon, also announced they would stop marketing water bead products to children.
Meanwhile, Esther Jo’s mother has continued advocating for stricter federal regulations and is working with U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin on legislation that would permanently ban water beads marketed to children.
The lawsuit remains pending, and the allegations made by the Bethard family have not been proven in court.
What are your thoughts on this case? Should expanding water beads be permanently banned for children’s products, or are stronger warning labels enough? Share your thoughts respectfully in the comments below.
