Teen doing handstand on second-floor railing falls at Mall of America

A 17-year-old boy doing a handstand on a second-floor railing fell to the first level of the Mall of America Saturday afternoon, but police and mall officials said he apparently suffered only a minor injury.

At his parents' request, the boy, from Minneapolis, was taken by ambulance to a hospital to be evaluated, said Rick Hart, Bloomington's deputy police chief.

"It probably wasn't his smartest move," Hart said shortly after the 2:30 p.m. incident.

"It's looking like he's going to be OK," said Dan Jasper, a mall spokesman. Jasper called the accident "horseplay," adding that mall security and paramedics had rushed to help the teen as shoppers looked on.

The boy was at the mall with his parents, Hart said, but they were not with him when he fell.

Hart said he didn't think the boy would be cited, but perhaps he learned a painful lesson.

"They said he was goofing off, and now he's hurt, so maybe he won't do that again," Hart said.