Child's Untimely Death May Be Media Effect

From Seattle's KING TV:

Everett boy buried in sandbox dies

07:00 PM PDT on Monday, March 10, 2008

By DEBORAH FELDMAN / KING 5 News and KING5.com Staff

EVERETT, Wash. - An Everett-area family is in mourning after a 10-year-old boy died after being buried alive by his playmates.

In a statement, the family of Codey Porter says he died peacefully at 3:35 p.m. with his family by his side.

The bizarre incident, which happened on Saturday, may have been sparked by a television cartoon.

Family members describe Codey, a fifth grader at Silver Firs Elementary School in Everett, as smart and imaginative. Unfortunately, it may have been his imagination that led to his critical situation.

"Really articulate. He's got a really good imagination too. He's just not a regular 10-year-old," said Joshua Quantrille, 30, who is Codey's half-brother.

Quantrille said Codey was playing with his own three sons and several other children Saturday in the backyard of a family friend's home.

"They watch a cartoon where there were like sandmasters or something. They can manipulate sand or something like that," said Quantrille. "He came up with an idea if he were to do this, then he would be able to be one of them. They're all under 10, so a pretty crazy imagination, you know. They were like hey, OK."

The cartoon "Narutu" shows the characters using sand as a tool and weapon and could have been what Codey and the others were trying to mimic when he was buried, headfirst, in a sandbox in the backyard of the house.