GoFundMe Started For Family Of Fort Lee Boy, 7, Who Died In Fall From Balcony

BERGEN COUNTY, NJ — A 7-year-old boy's fatal fall from a Fort Lee high-rise on Wednesday was a "tragic accident," the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office said Thursday.

Police were called to a Fort Lee apartment complex at 5:29 p.m. on Wednesday on a report that the child had fallen from an upper-floor window, and they found him unresponsive, prosecutors said.

The child was pronounced dead at Hackensack University Medical Center.

"The Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Major Crimes Unit and the Fort Lee Police Department have determined that the circumstances surrounding the death of a 7-year-old boy at a residential apartment complex on Anderson Avenue yesterday were the result of a tragic accident and no criminal activity was involved," the Prosecutor's Office said in a release late Thursday morning.

They declined to release further details.

However, media reports said the child fell from a 21st floor balcony at the 22-story complex. News 12 said the child fell from the Hampshire House co-op building.

"In the blink of an eye, the world of the ... family was turned upside down," said a fundraiser started for the family on Thursday. "They have been struck by an unimaginable tragedy that has left them in a state of shock and despair."

The Prosecutor's Office had noted earlier, "Prosecutor Musella, Chief Love, and Chief Hintze share their deepest condolences with the boy’s family and friends as well as the Fort Lee community."

Has Happened Before

In New Jersey, state law says all high floors of buildings must have bars on the windows if a child age 10 or under lives there and the tenants request them. Landlords are required to pay for installation (see the law here).

Last year, a doctor at Rutgers said she sees a rise in children dying from falls out windows in springtime, and gave advice on prevention. (Read more here.)