Lawsuit Claims Microsoft Xbox Sparked Fire That Killed Baby

The family of an Illinois infant that died in a house fire has filed a lawsuit claiming that an Xbox video game system manufactured by Microsoft and sold by Wal-Mart Stores overheated and sparked the killer blaze.
According to the suit, the wiring that connected the Xbox 360 to an electrical outlet became so hot that it started a "catastrophic" fire at a house in Warsaw, Ill. The victim, an infant named Wade Kline, perished in the inferno.

"The fire was a direct and proximate result of the overheating of the game's power supply and wiring," claims the lawsuit, which was filed in state Circuit Court in Illinois. Microsoft, Wal-Mart, and an unnamed power-supply maker are named as defendants.

On Wednesday, Wal-Mart filed a procedural motion to move the case from state court to U.S. District Court in Illinois. The suit was originally filed in December 2006.

The lawsuit claims the fatal fire occurred in December 2004, even though the Xbox 360 didn't officially launch until May 2005 -- an indication that the unit involved may actually have been a first-generation Xbox console.

http://www.n4g.com/NewsCom-41639.aspx

This is sick to post something tragic like this here. This forum is about videogames only and to bring something like this here is sick. Oh and the 360 wasn't out until November 2005.

America, land of the white-trash, lawsuit-happy dumbass.Verge_6

America, land of the white-trash, lawsuit-happy dumbass.Verge_6

Even though I'm a proud American, I agree.

This is stupid.

I hope the TC wasn't expecting cows to go TLHBO.

[QUOTE="Verge_6"]America, land of the white-trash, lawsuit-happy dumbass.thenorminator

Claiming a 360 started a fire when it wasn't even out when the blaze happened? I agree. 

[QUOTE="Verge_6"]America, land of the white-trash, lawsuit-happy dumbass.thenorminator

Its true.. Every other day we see a lawsuit coming at a big company for a moronic reason. Im sorry that the kid died and all, but it wasnt Microsofts fault.  

I did not know the 360 launched in May 2005 and this is  family trying to collect  funds. How in the world do they know the Xbox caused a spark? They will have a hard time proving that case.

[QUOTE="thenorminator"][QUOTE="Verge_6"]America, land of the white-trash, lawsuit-happy dumbass.asdasd

Its true.. Every other day we see a lawsuit coming at a big company for a moronic reason. Im sorry that the kid died and all, but it wasnt Microsofts fault.  

i edited the post

Sorry folks, it's true.

"Ooooh, I'm such a lame obese loser...damn all those Big Macs I had! McDonalds should have warned me I would get fat if I ate ten of these a day! By God, I'm gonna sue the living hell out of them for making this way!"

People are !@#$ing moronic money diggers... It was probably faulty fusing in their own house that sparked the fireasdasd

Sorry folks, it's true.

"Ooooh, I'm such a lame obese loser...damn all those Big Macs I had! McDonalds should have warned me I would get fat if I ate ten of these a day! By God, I'm gonna sue the living hell out of them for making this way!"

 

Verge_6

Sadly, many people have sued fast food joints just for that, claiming it was their fault.

The family of an Illinois infant that died in a house fire has filed a lawsuit claiming that an Xbox video game system manufactured by Microsoft and sold by Wal-Mart Stores overheated and sparked the killer blaze.
According to the suit, the wiring that connected the Xbox 360 to an electrical outlet became so hot that it started a "catastrophic" fire at a house in Warsaw, Ill. The victim, an infant named Wade Kline, perished in the inferno.

"The fire was a direct and proximate result of the overheating of the game's power supply and wiring," claims the lawsuit, which was filed in state Circuit Court in Illinois. Microsoft, Wal-Mart, and an unnamed power-supply maker are named as defendants.

On Wednesday, Wal-Mart filed a procedural motion to move the case from state court to U.S. District Court in Illinois. The suit was originally filed in December 2006.

The lawsuit claims the fatal fire occurred in December 2004, even though the Xbox 360 didn't officially launch until May 2005 -- an indication that the unit involved may actually have been a first-generation Xbox console.

http://www.n4g.com/NewsCom-41639.aspx

Tnasty11

wow, ur pretty pathetic and try way too hard to bring something as serious as this in order to make fun of a video game console on an online forum. It doesnt even say how long the console was on. if it was on for maybe..... say.... 24 hours straight, im pretty sure any console would fry after that long. you need evidence of how long the console was on, then show comparison of how long other consoles can go without overheating, in order to say that the xbox 360 overheats too quick. My brother works in a hollywood video/ Gamecrazy, and he says they leave their xbox 360 on from the moment they open up the store, until closing, and it has never overheated or anything, and they have never had a single problem with it.

wow, ur pretty pathetic and try way too hard to bring something as serious as this in order to make fun of a video game console on an online forum. It doesnt even say how long the console was on. if it was on for maybe..... say.... 24 hours straight, im pretty sure any console would fry after that long. you need evidence of how long the console was on, then show comparison of how long other consoles can go without overheating, in order to say that the xbox 360 overheats too quick. My brother works in a hollywood video/ Gamecrazy, and he says they leave their xbox 360 on from the moment they open up the store, until closing, and it has never overheated or anything, and they have never had a single problem with it.

wergfwefwef

Yeah this is sad.

P.S.

My Xbox is a launch system from November 2001. It has never once over heated or gotten hot. This is more of a case of an over loaded wall outlet.

People were burning down their houses with X-mas lights before they finally put fuses in the cords. People are dumb like that.

Sorry folks, it's true.

"Ooooh, I'm such a lame obese loser...damn all those Big Macs I had! McDonalds should have warned me I would get fat if I ate ten of these a day! By God, I'm gonna sue the living hell out of them for making this way!"

 

Verge_6

Touche :| 

[QUOTE="wergfwefwef"]

wow, ur pretty pathetic and try way too hard to bring something as serious as this in order to make fun of a video game console on an online forum. It doesnt even say how long the console was on. if it was on for maybe..... say.... 24 hours straight, im pretty sure any console would fry after that long. you need evidence of how long the console was on, then show comparison of how long other consoles can go without overheating, in order to say that the xbox 360 overheats too quick. My brother works in a hollywood video/ Gamecrazy, and he says they leave their xbox 360 on from the moment they open up the store, until closing, and it has never overheated or anything, and they have never had a single problem with it.

Truth_Hurts_U

Yeah this is sad.

P.S.

My Xbox is a launch system from November 2001. It has never once over heated or gotten hot. This is more of a case of an over loaded wall outlet.

People were burning down their houses with X-mas lights before they finally put fuses in the cords. People are dumb like that.

Exactly. The original Xbox was build like a freakin beast. I would have easily accepted a 360 that was bigger if it was reliable like the original Xbox. 

[QUOTE="wergfwefwef"]

wow, ur pretty pathetic and try way too hard to bring something as serious as this in order to make fun of a video game console on an online forum. It doesnt even say how long the console was on. if it was on for maybe..... say.... 24 hours straight, im pretty sure any console would fry after that long. you need evidence of how long the console was on, then show comparison of how long other consoles can go without overheating, in order to say that the xbox 360 overheats too quick. My brother works in a hollywood video/ Gamecrazy, and he says they leave their xbox 360 on from the moment they open up the store, until closing, and it has never overheated or anything, and they have never had a single problem with it.

Truth_Hurts_U

Yeah this is sad.

P.S.

My Xbox is a launch system from November 2001. It has never once over heated or gotten hot. This is more of a case of an over loaded wall outlet.

People were burning down their houses with X-mas lights before they finally put fuses in the cords. People are dumb like that.

Exactly. Not once did my Xbox, or any of my acquaintances' Xboxes, heat up. They probably had an outlet that put out more voltage than what it should. 

Most Ridclous story ever

u_u rest in peace lil angel

That's really sad.

But seriously, enough with the lawsuits. 

DEAM you microsoft

Sorry folks, it's true.

"Ooooh, I'm such a lame obese loser...damn all those Big Macs I had! McDonalds should have warned me I would get fat if I ate ten of these a day! By God, I'm gonna sue the living hell out of them for making this way!"

 

Verge_6

Speaking of idiotic Americans suing...

Ahhh M$,their showing their true colors MuhAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
Squall_Griver

You're an idiot, and just an overall horrible person for laughing at this. There's nothing else to say to that.

This is clearly the fault of the family, since the 360 had not yet launched and the original Xbox didn't overheat. It's disgusting that their trying to get money from this, when all signs point to it being their fault. I still feel awful for them, but they should grieve instead of trying to cash in. 

Something like that could've happened with any electronic device. Also, I don't know how people can lawsuit over someone's death. It's like...paying for one's life. I probably wouldn't be able to use the money knowing that I gained it by having someone close to me die.

[QUOTE="Verge_6"]

dante1972

Take that elsewhere.

[QUOTE="thenorminator"][QUOTE="Verge_6"]America, land of the white-trash, lawsuit-happy dumbass.asdasd

Its true.. Every other day we see a lawsuit coming at a big company for a moronic reason. Im sorry that the kid died and all, but it wasnt Microsofts fault.  

You dont know that, neither do I or anyone other then the family involved and those investigating the case. I have doubts that a wire can just catch on fire, especially when its coated in rubber and could only actually start burning if there was a spark from an exposed part of the cable or a spark from the outlet itself due to poor grounding.

[QUOTE="dante1972"]

[QUOTE="Verge_6"]

Vyse_The_Daring

Take that elsewhere.

Yeah, that took it to a whole new level... 

First: Anyone who laughed or made a joke about this: go stick your head in an oven, you're diluting the genepool.

With that out of the way MS won't pay a dime other than legal fees because the family has no case. Here's why:

1. In the unlikely case it was the Xbox that caused the fire, MS offered replacement powercords for free and (to the best of my knowledge) notified all customers.
2. This was really the result of neglectful parenting for the reasons listed below:
3. The Xbox was on, meaning either someone was stupid and left it running or (more likely) someone was in the room. The other possibility is that the baby turned it on, which is covered in my next point.
4. If your baby died in a fire and you didn't, you let the baby out of your sight for a significant amount of time (as noted by the amount of time it would have taken for the fire to amount to something that couldn't have been handled or the baby been saved), which is just poor parenting.
5. This also means that the baby had to be in an entirely different room than the parents, and based on point #3, was not in a proper (for lack of a better term) restraining device like a crib or playpen if it was the baby that turned the Xbox on.
6. Not even being able to name the right console (you did own it afterall) just reeks of cash grab.
7. In my experiences the Xbox is pretty much bulletproof, the only only reason I went through 2 (and the 2nd ones on its way to console heaven) is because of prolonged car trips in a soft bag in my trunk.
8. Finally, there is little chance that there would be enough left of the Xbox to prove it was the source of the fire, unless you happened to be in the room and saw it, which then backs up points 3, 4 and 5.

I'm actually embarassed for this family, their baby died and the next thing they do is try and cash in on the big bad corperation. Just sad, I'm so glad I live in Canada.

this is sad but wtf were the parents doing??? did they leave the xbox on in the babies room then leave him there???

1. if I had an infant they would be in my sight at all times so if there was a fire and I could get out of the house the baby is coming with me or we are both going down

2. if they were asleep or something and left the xbox on...its just if I had an infant I would keep the crib the baby sleeps in - in my room again if I can get out my baby is coming with me

how the hell did they make it out and leave the baby...again I don't know all the fact so maybe there are mitigating circumstances but that is really weird