Poisoned Halloween candy is a myth
I love myth busters like Professor Joel Best. You can read my story here where I interviewed the researcher who combed reports of Halloween mischief going back to the 1950s and he has found not one case of poisoned candy or a razor in an apple handed out by strangers to unsuspecting children. But we are all so sure it happened one time somewhere to a friend of a friend of a friend we know.
It makes you think how sad it is that fear can ruin a lovely tradition like getting dressed up and meeting new neighbors as you go door to door with the kids yelling, "Trick or treat!" And that nice old lady who makes homemade cookies is now looked at like a serial killer and her hard work gets chucked in the trash in favor of store bought treats.
Go ahead kids. Ring the doorbell.
--Sharon Kennedy Wynne
Sharon Kennedy Wynne has sunscreen in her blood. She may have been born in Buffalo but she got here as fast as she could, in time for kindergarten. She grew up in St. Petersburg, graduated from the University of Florida journalism school, and even got married at Sunken Gardens. She's one of the few adults we know who actually loves taking her kids to the beach. She has two sons and with 10 years of parenting under her belt, she's starting to feel a little less out of her league. She comes from a large family and loves to debate, so brace yourself when the hot topics come up.
Amy Hollyfield is a workaholic mother of two young
daughters, blessed to have a work-at-home husband who makes their life possible. She was born in Detroit and moved around a lot as a kid (read: Air Force brat). She has lived in Florida since the month after she
graduated from Northwestern University. She lives for the yelps, hugs and kisses that greet her on nights that she makes it home before bedtime.
Sherry Robinson was born in the Sunshine State but she feels more comfortable inside a mall than outside at the beach -- thank goodness her husband is the outdoorsy type. He takes their two sons on night hikes, beach runs and bug hunts while Sherry does her best to take care of the homestead -- and find out what is new on the store shelves. A graduate of the University of South Florida in 19noneofyourbusiness, Sherry has been at the Times for nearly 20 years. And with nearly 10 years of parenting experience, Sherry is eager to offer up some great dish on raising kids and keeping your sanity.
Guest blogger Tracey Henry, a.k.a. Suburban Diva, is a frantic, slightly frazzled mother of four. She is a freelance humor writer and author which is the only thing that parenting four children ages 12-1 trains you for, except perhaps court jester and professional bull rider. She and her husband have lived all over the country, but settled in Florida eight years ago because the beachcombing is so much better here than on the banks of the Mississippi. Their family time includes a lot of sport -- both watching and playing -- and fun in the sun and surf. Catch her in Whoa, Momma! and on her site, 
Sherri Day and her husband welcomed their daughter into the world in early 2008. So far, she describes parenthood as exciting, exhausting and exhilarating. A self-described Southern belle with small-town values and big-city idealism, Sherri was born in rural Georgia. She received her bachelor's degree in journalism from Clark Atlanta University and her master's of journalism from the University of California at Berkeley. She is the Brandon bureau chief for the Times. Sherri moved to Tampa from Brooklyn four years ago.
snopes lists the minneapolis star tribune, 2 november 2000 as one of its references. i don't have access to the star tribune's archives, but i'm sure anyone who did could quickly find the primary source for this story.
Posted by: urban legends | November 02, 2009 at 11:09 AM
That's a good question, UrbandLegends, and you aren't the only reader who has sent me emails or calls today sure that they heard somewhere that it really happened. But when I ask for some link or proof ... nothing. Yours is the first I've gotten with an actual name and case. I did a quick search and didn't find the actual case, just the Snopes mention of it, so I put it to Professor Best. Here's his answer:
"I am home, and don't know whether that case is in my tally. My point stands: I know of no child who has been killed or seriously injured by a contaminate treat picked up in the course of trick-or-treating. I can't prove that it has never happened, just that it hasn't been reported in the sources I've been able to examine.
"Because these are minor stories (because there haven't been serious harms), we don't know much about the details of the cases. Folklorists do have a concept of ostension (basically the idea that some people may act out contemporary legends). It would be interesting to know more about this case."
So my only answer is stay tuned. One of the premises of his research has been that it's hard to prove a negative. If someone did do this it would be news, and this was not big news. The other way to look at it is out of a country of 300 million people if there is only 1 recorded incident in the last 50 years, it is an exceedingly rare thing.
Posted by: Sharon Wynne | October 31, 2009 at 06:31 AM
My child was deathly poisoned last year because of candy poisoning how DARE YOU SAY IT'S PERFECTLY SAFE. THERE ARE SICKOS OUT THERE. THIS IS A SADISTIC HOLIDAY WITH FREAKS TRYING TO MURDER OUR CHILDREN! STAY INDOORS!!!
Posted by: Dr. Pig | October 30, 2009 at 10:50 PM
You may be right about the poison and razor blades, but snopes.com is my reference of choice for urban legends, and they found that there's been at least one case of halloween candy being tampered with:
"... in Minneapolis in 2000, when 49-year-old James Joseph Smith was charged with one count of adulterating a substance with intent to cause death, harm or illness after it was determined he'd put needles in Snickers bars and handed them out to children on Halloween. A 14-year-old boy was pricked by a needle hidden in a bar he'd bitten into, but no one required medical attention."
So while there's no reason to flip out about something that's extraordinarily unlikely, there's also no need to blindly eat something that a stranger gave you. Especially since even if no one has poisoned candy before, that doesn't mean no one ever will.
Posted by: urban legends | October 29, 2009 at 02:27 PM
You may be right about the poison and razor blades, but snopes.com is my reference of choice for urban legends, and they found that there's been at least one case of halloween candy being tampered with:
"... in Minneapolis in 2000, when 49-year-old James Joseph Smith was charged with one count of adulterating a substance with intent to cause death, harm or illness after it was determined he'd put needles in Snickers bars and handed them out to children on Halloween. A 14-year-old boy was pricked by a needle hidden in a bar he'd bitten into, but no one required medical attention."
So while there's no reason to flip out about something that's extraordinarily unlikely, there's also no need to blindly eat something that a stranger gave you. Especially since even if no one has poisoned candy before, that doesn't mean no one ever will.
Posted by: urban legends | October 29, 2009 at 02:25 PM
One more thing about the Superflash. The one downside of them is that they are either shining very brightly or are out. After the batteries have run 100 hours, the lights are out.
There's no slow decrease of brightness as with many other bike lights.
For that reason, I attach two or more lights to the back of my bicycle. If one light were to go out while I'm bicycling, the other light(s) will still be flashing.
The problem with lights that slowly decrease in brightness is that you are tempted to continue using them even when the lights can no longer be seen from a far away distance. I've seen bicyclists with lights that can be seen from only a block away.
Posted by: Kimberly | October 27, 2009 at 08:08 AM
But getting hit by cars is a real thing that happens.
The good thing is that you can prevent most of these crashes by obeying road laws, using good safety techniques, and teaching your children to do likewise.
When you teach your children the laws and techniques to be a safe walker, you are teaching them things that they need to know to be safe runners, in-line skaters, skateboarders, bicyclists, and motorists.
Also, put flashing red bicycle lights front and back on each of your kids so the motorists will find it easier to notice your kids. Go to your local bicycle shop to check out the options. The shop probably has a display where you can turn on the lights to see how brightly they shine.
Look for lights that shine brightly, flash, and last a long time on a set of batteries.
My favorite red tail lights are the Superflash made by Planet Bike. I bicycle on main roads with three Superflashes, and motorists have complimented me on how easy it is to see me. Motorists can see me from a long distance away and have plenty of time to prepare for safely passing me.
The Superflash last 100 hours in flashing mode on a set of batteries. So, you save batteries in the long run.
Superflashes can be clipped into a mount on a bicycle, on a belt loop, on a dog collar, or other places.
I'm am not employed by Planet Bike or any company that benefits from your purchase of Superflash lights. I'm just a bicyclist passing on safety info because I know how much you care about your kids and pets.
www.rei.com/product/765703#
Feel free to check out other bicycle lights in addition to the Superflash.
Posted by: Kimberly | October 27, 2009 at 08:01 AM