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Door-to-door school sales debated after boy's slaying
October 1, 1997
Web posted at: 10:02 p.m. EDT (0202 GMT)TOMS RIVER, New Jersey (CNN) -- During the school year, it's a scene that takes place across the United States -- children selling merchandise door-to-door, raising money to benefit their schools or activity groups.
But now, the rape and murder of an 11-year-old New Jersey boy who tragically knocked on the wrong door has brought renewed attention to the issue of whether door-to-door sales should be discouraged, or even outlawed.
CNN's Christine Negroni reports
Prosecutors say Edward Werner was attacked and murdered by a 15-year-old boy who opened the door at a house in Jackson Township, near Toms River. Edward hoped to win a walkie talkie by selling the most merchandise in a contest.
Authorities say they know of no other connection between the victim and the teen who has been charged -- that it was a "chance encounter" brought about by Edward's door-to-door selling in what a prosecutor describes as a "very safe" neighborhood.
The teen-ager was charged Wednesday with murder and aggravated sexual assault. Authorities did not release his name because he is a juvenile.
Raising money for the PTA
Schools and non-profit groups pull down an estimated $2 billion a year from product sales, and no state has a law restricting door-to-door fund-raising sales by school children. But in the wake of Edward's slaying, a New Jersey legislator has suggested a ban.
Ironically, Edward was raising money for the PTA -- though the national Parent Teacher Association has a policy discouraging students from selling merchandise door-to-door. The sales kits provided to the students warned them to sell only to "family, friends and neighbors with whom you are familiar."
The Association of Fund Raisers and Direct Sellers, a trade group representing about half of the estimated 1,500 companies that deal with school and youth groups, has also adopted a policy saying it does not endorse door-to-door sales.
Instead, the association suggests that children sell to relatives, friends or neighbors they know, while having parents sell to their co-workers, according to Russell Lemieux, the association's executive director.
"That's really the bulk of sales in fund raising," Lemieux said. "The instance of a child going door-to-door is quite rare."
However, children are often offered incentives that encourage them to sell as much as they can -- incentives which could have a tendency to encourage, rather than discourage, door-to-door sales.
"Our members say incentives ... make a big difference," Lemieux said.
Robbery thought the motive
When he was last seen, Edward had about $200 on him, and police say he had been showing that money to friends. Robbery is believed to have been a motive in his murder, but no robbery charge has been filed.
In the wake of the tragedy Edward's school district has banned door-to-door sales, as green ribbons have begun to appear in his memory.
Correspondent Christine Negroni contributed to this report.
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