The State - News from Nov. 6, 1987

A $200,000 agreement was reached to settle a suit against the San Jose Mercury News over the 1985 death of 2-year-old Lawrence Nickle Jr., who suffocated when he put a plastic newspaper bag over his head. The Mercury News agreed to pay $90,000, with the remainder covered by four plastic bag manufacturers. The newspaper’s attorney, Edward Davis Jr., said the paper did not feel it was to blame but settled to avoid the expense of a long, complex case. The boy’s parents originally sued for $5 million, but that was reduced to $1 million before the settlement. Davis said the Mercury News has switched to thicker bags and is preparing bags with warning labels, a condition of the settlement. Douglas Allen, attorney for the Nickle family, said the incident has prompted newspapers across the country to follow that example. “All over the country we’ve raised the consciousness of newspapers regarding these plastic bags,” he said.