Death from mailbox baseball

[snopes]

Comment: I've seen this a few times over the years, and it's starting to
smell more and more like an UL, since I have never seen an actual
attribution to the supposed family or owner in question. I've also
searched the site under the likely areas and not been able to find mention
of this story. Any ideas?

Here's one example:

After reading through your recent stories about "indestructable
mailboxes", I went searching for an NPR story I heard awhile ago on the
topic. Unfortunately I cannot locate it on their website, or on the ole
intertubes, but thought it was relevant to the discussion.

The story was about a farmer who's mailbox was regularly getting smashed
and he grew tired of replacing it. What he decided to do was teach the
kids a lesson by giving them a surprise on their next attempt. He put the
mailbox on a steel pole, embedded it several feet in the ground, and
poured in a heavy concrete base. I believe he reinforced the mailbox
itself as well, but all of this was done in such a way that it did not
appear fortified.

Eventually the kids came back for another run, one of them wound up and
swung at the mailbox, and because it was so strong, when he hit it the bat
rebounded and struck him in the head, killing him instantly. The kid's
family sued and won, I believe the grounds were that because the farmer
intentionally built the mailbox in such a way that it appeared to be
normal, but in fact was extrodinarily strong, he was complicit in the
boy's death.

The reason I bring this up, many of the comments people sent in about your
mailbox post were of the nature of "this will learn em". Extreme caution
is warranted, because as in the example I cited above, if your actions
result in an injury, you could be liable.

The story elements usually include:
--somebody pissed off at teenage vandals who reinforces his mailbox
--stupid teenage vandal with baseball bat who hits the new box, the bat
ricochets and causes injury (or death)
--family of boy (sometimes boy) sues the owner of the mailbox (and wins)

[Pseudo_Croat]

I doubt it. Wouldn't the bat splinter or otherwise break apart after striking a steel pole with that much force?

I vote fake until an in-print news story tells otherwise.

- Pseudo_Croat

[kitap]

Originally Posted by Pseudo_Croat

I doubt it. Wouldn't the bat splinter or otherwise break apart after striking a steel pole with that much force?

I vote fake until an in-print news story tells otherwise.

- Pseudo_Croat

Some baseball bats are made out of metal. Aluminum, maybe?

[diddy]

Also this kid may not have struck so hard to splinter the bat (if it was wood) just enough to where it would bounce off and fly back a bit. Kill him though.. I doubt it.

[Liza]

A friend of mine showed up at school one Monday with his arm in a sling. He had been in the passenger seat of another friend's car and decided to play mailbox baseball with a (full) 2 liter coke bottle. It rebounded, and he dislocated his shoulder. The bottle and the mailbox were fine. So things can bounce off hard enough to hurt you.

Or something. I'm sure there's a point in there.

Liza

[Recklessmess]

Originally Posted by snopes

--family of boy (sometimes boy) sues the owner of the mailbox (and wins)

Unless the farmer booby traps the mailbox to intentionally harm the person who is acting, there's no way this case stands up in court. I doubt any judge would see a strong construction of a mailbox as such a trap...unless the farmer put out a challenge to the kid to try it again.