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Several families sue Amazon for selling ‘suicide kits’ to their now deceased children

Twelve sets of parents from across the country, including a family in Washington, accuse Amazon of ignoring warnings about selling a product used for suicide.

Susannah Frame

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Published: 9:59 AM PST February 2, 2024
Updated: 10:13 AM PST February 2, 2024

Twelve sets of parents, now plaintiffs from across the country, have all suffered the excruciating blow of a child dying by suicide. They all argue the retail giant Amazon is to blame and are suing the company.  

“Amazon was supplying the means for suicide. It was profiting on suicide,” said New York City-based plaintiff attorney Carrie Goldberg.

At issue is sodium nitrite. It’s a common meat preservative when used at a strength of 6%. Court records show between 2018 and 2022 several young people bought the chemical compound at 99% strength on Amazon, then used it to end their lives. At that concentration, it’s so toxic, that it’s to be used in laboratory research or hospital settings. There’s no known household use. Records show that for four years Amazon received warnings the product was being used by people to take their lives, yet the company continued to sell the product anyway. The company removed the product worldwide in late 2022.

“To minimize the potential for product misuse, we are limiting the sale of high concentration sodium nitrite to business buyers on Amazon Business,” an Amazon spokesperson wrote in a statement to KING 5.

Records show other retailers, including eBay, Shopify and Etsy, removed sodium nitrite from their sites after learning it was being used as a vehicle for suicide. In 2019, eBay “took the voluntary decision to prohibit globally the sale of sodium nitrite as a chemical after receiving a report of potential use of the substance for suicide attempts,” wrote an eBay executive.

Parents involved in litigation with Amazon said that the company’s ban came too late.

“(Amazon) knew. It’s not they should have known. They knew,” parent Michelle Stickley, of Camas, Washington said. “But my son wasn’t worthy.”

Stickley’s 15-year-old son Tyler died by suicide in Camas in December 2020.  

“I can’t get out of bed still. I stare out a window. Time goes by,” Michelle said through a stream of tears. “I don’t even know how to put it into words, how broken I feel.”

Credit: Courtesy photo
Michelle Stickley, of Camas, Washington, and her son Tyler, who died by suicide.

Her son Tyler, a high school sophomore when he died, was known as a compassionate soul who loved animals, science, and family. He was a gifted and prolific artist who also suffered from depression. Stickley said the family provided support including therapy, medication, and access to health care, yet no one prepared them for what Amazon was offering.

“Everything was locked up. Our medications were locked up. I checked on him before he went to bed. I checked on him in the middle of the night,” Stickley said. “Everything that I could think of. But nobody said, ‘Did you check his Amazon (account)?’”

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