Lawn Darts

Lawn darts are devices with elongated tips that are designed in such a manner that when they are thrown into the air, they will contact the ground tip first. Lawn darts are intended to be used outdoors. Many times, lawn darts are used in a game where the darts are thrown at a target or at some other feature on the ground. Crown dart is a new target game derived from lawn darts, in which large darts are thrown underarm at the same target dart, called Mark.

A set of lawn darts (also called Jarts, or yard darts) typically includes four large darts and two targets. The darts are usually about twelve inches long, with a heavy metal or weighted plastic tip on one end and three plastic fins on a rod at the other end. The darts are meant to be grasped by the rod and thrown underarm toward a target. Although the tip may not be sharp enough to be evidently dangerous, these darts can cause serious injuries, such as skull punctures.

The irrefutably dangerous types of lawn darts that were available in the past typically came with a metal or weighted plastic body, on the front of which is an elongated metal shaft 1/4 inch in diameter. Such darts have a shaft containing plastic fins on the rear of the body. These darts are approximately a foot in length, and they weigh about a quarter to a half pound. These darts are intended to stick in the ground upon throwing.

The potential for lawn darts to cause the aforementioned types of injuries is tremendous. It is a combination of factors, such as weight, the narrow elongated shaft, the speed of the dart at the time of impact, and the thickness of the child’s skull at the point of impact that present the risk. Thus, lawn darts can be called the granddaddy of all dangerous toys.

All types of lawn darts have been banned from sale in the United States by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, effective December 19, 1988. In an outdoor game, lawn darts caused the deaths of four children, the latest being the same in early 1997 near Elkhart, Indiana. The Commission has concluded that all types of lawn darts have the potential for injuries such as skull puncture, during reasonably likely use or misuse.