US District Court in Puerto Rico Orders Companies to Halt Imports of Dangerous Children's Products
The U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico ordered Puerto Rican companies Pharmacare and China District PR and their owner, Juan Reynoso, to stop importing dangerous children's toys, the Department of Justice said. The toys, along with other consumer products, violated the Consumer Product Safety Act and the Federal Hazardous Substances Act, among other laws, warranting an order from the court permanently enjoining the products' entry, DOJ said. The products allegedly had dangerous levels of lead and phthalates, according to the U.S.'s complaint against Reynoso and his companies. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has collected a total of 116 samples of these products since 2017, with 32 coming from Pharmacare and 84 from China District. These goods also included bicycle helmets, rattles and pacifiers that did not meet safety or labeling requirements, the DOJ complaint said.
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A consent decree requires the defendants to stop importing the toys and other consumer products until Reynoso and the companies implement “numerous remedial measures to bring their operations into compliance with the law,” DOJ said. These requirements include hiring an independent product safety coordinator, conducting an audit of all imported merchandise in inventory for compliance with CPSA, FHSA and other related laws, and implementing a written product safety program, the decree said.
“There is no greater responsibility of the Department of Justice than to protect our children,” said U.S. Attorney Stephen Muldrow for the District of Puerto Rico. “Companies cannot be allowed to import hazardous toys and children’s products into Puerto Rico. We take this responsibility very seriously and will take the necessary action to keep unsafe products out of the hands of our children. I appreciate and value the support from and collaboration with the Department of Justice and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.”