In the summer of 2024, a family's ordinary afternoon of play on a Maine vacation became an irreversible tragedy when a badminton racket's metal shaft separated and struck six-year-old Lucy Morgan in the head, killing her four days later. Her family, led by her father — a New Jersey pastor — now brings a lawsuit against Franklin Sports, the racket's manufacturer, alleging that a known design flaw and the absence of even the simplest safeguard transformed a child's toy into something fatal. The case asks not only what was owed to Lucy, but what responsibility manufacturers carry when they are aw
Family sues Franklin Sports after badminton racket shaft fatally pierces 6-year-old's skull
6-year-old Lucy Morgan died from a skull piercing injury; her three siblings and parents witnessed or heard the incident and suffered severe emotional distress.
Something as simple as a pin in the handle, which would cost pennies
Mark
So a badminton racket just... came apart? During a child playing with it?
Mimi
Yes. The aluminum shaft separated from the wooden handle. It became a projectile and struck Lucy in the head. The family's lawsuit says the adhesive bonding those two pieces was defective or insufficient.
Luke
Do we know if this was a manufacturing defect in that specific racket, or a design flaw that could affect other rackets Franklin Sports made?
Mimi
The lawsuit alleges it's a design problem—that the handle and shaft weren't adequately secured, and that there was no secondary restraint like a pin that could have prevented separation.
Mark
And the attorney says this has happened before?
Mimi
He claims a child in New York lost an eye when a Franklin Sports racket came apart. He says the company knew about that incident.
Luke
That's a serious allegation. But we should note—we don't have independent confirmation of that New York incident from the reporting. It's the attorney's claim.
Mark
What is the family asking for in the lawsuit?
Mimi
Compensatory and punitive damages. Funeral expenses, emotional distress damages, loss of companionship. They haven't specified a dollar amount.
Luke
And Franklin Sports—have they responded?
Mimi
Not yet. Fox News reached out to them and to the family's attorneys, but no comment was provided.
Mark
What struck me most was the detail about the prayer journal.
Mimi
Yes. Lucy's father found it in her backpack after they returned home. It had drawings and Bible notes she'd written. He said finding it was one of the most beautiful gifts amid their grief.
The Pulse
- A metal shaft dislodged from a badminton racket during normal backyard play and struck six-year-old Lucy Morgan in the skull, killing her four days later at a Portland trauma center.
- Her siblings watched it happen; her parents came running toward her screams — the entire family now carries the weight of a moment that lasted less than a second.
- The lawsuit alleges Franklin Sports used inadequate adhesive, omitted a secondary restraint that could have cost pennies, and failed to warn consumers — even after a prior incident left a child in New York without an eye.
- Attorneys are pursuing both compensatory and punitive damages, framing the case as one of corporate indifference to a known and correctable hazard in widely distributed consumer equipment.
- The case casts a shadow over recreational sports equipment broadly, raising the question of how many similar products on rental property porches and in family garages carry the same unaddressed risk.
In the summer of 2024, a family's ordinary afternoon of play on a Maine vacation became an irreversible tragedy when a badminton racket's metal shaft separated and struck six-year-old Lucy Morgan in the head, killing her four days later. Her family, led by her father — a New Jersey pastor — now brings a lawsuit against Franklin Sports, the racket's manufacturer, alleging that a known design flaw and the absence of even the simplest safeguard transformed a child's toy into something fatal. The case asks not only what was owed to Lucy, but what responsibility manufacturers carry when they are aware of danger and choose economy over correction. In Lucy's backpack, returned after the family came home without her, was a prayer journal filled with drawings and faith — a quiet testament to a life cut short by what her family's attorney calls a preventable failure.
On a June afternoon in 2024, six-year-old Lucy Morgan was playing in the front yard of a rental cottage in Limerick, Maine, when the aluminum shaft of a badminton racket separated from its wooden handle and struck her in the head. She was airlifted to Maine Medical Center in Portland, where she died four days later on June 5. Her three siblings witnessed the moment. Her parents heard her screaming and ran to her.
The Morgan family has since filed a wrongful death and product-liability lawsuit against Franklin Sports, the Massachusetts-based manufacturer that made the racket — which had been supplied at the rental property. The suit alleges that the bond between the shaft and handle was defective, that the design lacked any secondary restraint, and that the company provided no consumer warning about the risk. Attorney Charles Hehmeyer claims Franklin Sports was already aware of a prior incident in which a child lost an eye when a racket came apart, and that a fix as simple as a pin in the handle — costing pennies — was never implemented. The lawsuit seeks compensatory and punitive damages, including funeral costs, emotional distress, and the loss of Lucy's companionship under Maine law.
Lucy's father, Jesse Morgan, is a pastor at Green Pond Bible Chapel in Rockaway, New Jersey. In the weeks after her death, he shared that the family had been enjoying what turned out to be their last full day at the lake cottage when the children chose to play badminton. After returning home, a friend delivered Lucy's backpack. Inside was a prayer journal she had received about a month before she died — filled with drawings, scripture, and notes about her faith. Jesse Morgan called it one of the most beautiful gifts amid the grief, and said he had no doubt his daughter loved God. He remembered her as a child with the faith of a mustard seed.
On a June afternoon in 2024, a 6-year-old girl named Lucy Morgan was playing badminton in the front yard of a rental cottage in Limerick, Maine, when the aluminum shaft of the racket came loose from its wooden handle. The metal piece became a projectile, striking her in the head and piercing her skull. Four days later, after treatment at Maine Medical Center in Portland, she died.
Now her family is suing Franklin Sports, the Massachusetts-based manufacturer, alleging the company sold equipment so poorly constructed that it turned into a weapon during ordinary play. The wrongful death and product-liability lawsuit contends that the racket's handle and metal shaft were not adequately bonded, that the adhesive was defective or insufficient, and that the design lacked any secondary restraint—a simple measure that might have kept the shaft from flying free. The family also claims Franklin Sports failed to warn consumers of the danger.
Lucy's 10-year-old brother was the one playing when the shaft detached, according to Maine State Police. The racket had been supplied at the family's rental property. Lucy was airlifted from Southern Maine Health Care in Sanford to the trauma center in Portland, where she remained until her death on June 5. Her three siblings witnessed the incident. Her parents heard her screaming and ran to help. All of them, the lawsuit states, suffered severe emotional distress.
Attorney Charles P. Hehmeyer, representing the Morgan family, told a local news outlet that this was not Franklin Sports' first such failure. He said a child in New York lost an eye when a badminton racket came apart, and he alleged the company was aware of that incident but chose not to redesign the product. "The company knew that but chose not to correct this with something as simple as a pin in the handle, which would cost pennies," Hehmeyer said. The lawsuit seeks both compensatory and punitive damages, though no specific dollar amount is listed. The family is asking for funeral expenses, damages for emotional distress, and compensation for the loss of their daughter's comfort, society, and companionship under Maine law.
Lucy's father, Jesse Morgan, is a pastor at Green Pond Bible Chapel in Rockaway, New Jersey. In the weeks after her death, he shared details of how the family had been spending what turned out to be their final full day at the lake cottage when the children decided to play badminton. He later told Fox News Digital that a friend returned Lucy's backpack after the family arrived home from Maine. Inside was a prayer journal she had received about a month before she died—filled with drawings, Bible-themed notes, and messages about her faith in God. Jesse Morgan said discovering the journal was one of the "most beautiful gifts" amid the family's grief, and that he had no doubt Lucy "loved Christ and loved God." He described her as having "the faith of a mustard seed."
Notable Quotes
This case represents a parent's worst nightmare. The Morgan family was enjoying an idyllic summer vacation here in Maine when they lost Lucy due to what we allege was a dangerous and defective piece of sports equipment.— Attorney Charles P. Hehmeyer, representing the Morgan family
The company knew that but chose not to correct this with something as simple as a pin in the handle, which would cost pennies.— Attorney Charles P. Hehmeyer, on Franklin Sports' alleged knowledge of prior incidents
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