A small child (Kevin Archer) is accidentally injected with a lethal dose of heroin while playing in a MacDonald's ball pit.

See the hoax here.

There are two versions of the Kevin Archer mail circulating. Both are almost identical but are set in different places.

The original version supposedly happened in Houston, Texas. A later version sets the story in 'Midrand,' no state or country specified. As the two versions are identical, the later Midrand version is clearly a hoax, the work of some uninventive dweeb. The latest version places the events in 'Midland,' again no state or country specified.

As for the original Houston version, it's an invention from start to finish, though one that incorporates established urban legends. Hidden dangers lurking in fast-food restaurant ball pits have been featured in urban legends before, most recently in a legend that poisonous snakes inhabit the ball pits of fast food restaurants. Both MacDonald's and Burger King were targets of the rumors in 1998.

Why is this a hoax and not a rumor? Unlike most rumors and urban legends which lack verifiable details, this story is packed with verifiable information: names, dates and places. These facts can't be the result of half-remembered incidents and confused recollections that are the hallmarks of urban legends, the author claims to be Lauren Archer, Kevin's mother. The spurious detail lends an air of false authority to the story.

• No one named Kevin Archer died in October 1994 in Texas.
• The Houston Chronicle has not published a story on Kevin Archer.

There are strong similarities in language between the 'snakes in ball pits' stories and the 'Kevin Archer' emails.

• Hoax writers' technique from the Houston Chronicle
• Needle in the Ball Pit from About.com
• Needlepointless Tragedy from the Urban Legends Reference Pages

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