Two-year-old Anthony Lucas Tang climbed out on a ledge of a luxury suite at the Staples Center and then fell 30 feet to his death following a Los Angeles Lakers game.
The toddler, who would have turned three in January, had reportedly just finished posing for photos with his parents and sister in front of the glass barrier. When the parents stopped to view the photos on their digital camera, the boy somehow climbed over the barrier and plunged 30 feet to a row of plastic seats. He was pronounced dead at a hospital shortly afterwards.
According to news reports, a spokesman for the L. A. Department of Building and Safety said that the luxury suite barriers at the Staples Center complied with building codes when it was built 10 years ago and still does. However, the boy’s death raises questions about the safety of stadium box barriers that can be as low as 26 inches. The Staples Center luxury suite barriers are reportedly 26 inches – 10 inches of concrete and 16 inches of synthetic glass – at their lowest points.
The Los Angeles Police Department’s juvenile division has launched a routine investigation into the incident, which is reminiscent of the 2009 death of a San Diego Chargers fan at Qualcomm Stadium who died after falling 30 feet from a suite in the stadium’s press box.
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