Suit filed to ban toy jewelry with lead

SAN FRANCISCO — Environmentalists sued the federal government Thursday to stop the sale of toy jewelry made with lead, citing dangers it can pose to brain development in children.

"I don't think parents realize that these pieces of jewelry have the potential to be harmful," said Jessica Frohman, head of a Sierra Club committee on toxic substances. Children can be exposed to dangerous levels of lead if they suck on or swallow the jewelry, she said.

The attorneys general in California and Illinois sent letters to the Environmental Protection Agency supporting the Sierra Club complaint.

The EPA would not comment directly on the lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco.

Inexpensive toy jewelry made with lead or painted with lead paint is sold in vending machines and some stores.

A 4-year-old Minnesota boy died of lead poisoning in February after swallowing a heart-shaped charm from a bracelet distributed by Reebok International.