WARREN, MI – In late August, a police officer in Warren, Michigan, conducting what he thought to be a typical traffic stop was thrust into a life-or-death situation involving an 18-month-old boy who’d apparently stopped breathing.
Bodycam footage captured the moments when the officer calmly took control of the situation and rendered aid, resulting in the baby boy being able to breathe once again.
On August 29th, Officer Brendan Fraser was in the midst of conducting a traffic stop for what he thought was a standard case of a speeding vehicle, pulling over the driver of a blue Camaro near 12 Mile and Schoenherr Road. However, when approaching the driver of the vehicle, Officer Fraser was met with the hysterical parents of a young baby boy who’d apparently stopped breathing.
Looking back at the stop in retrospect, Officer Fraser told a local ABC News outlet that the driver was, “waving his hands out the window, and he's saying that there's a baby that's unresponsive.”
Bodycam footage from the stop shows the officer asking for the baby, with the parents at first being reasonably confused and begging for the officer to let them be on their way to the hospital.
According to Officer Fraser, when taking the child from the parents, he recalled the young boy appearing blue in the face and having a bit of saliva around his mouth.
As seen in the bodycam footage, the parents explained to Officer Fraser that they’d recently taken their baby boy to the hospital, where staff there reportedly told the family the child had COVID. However, according to the parents, the child began going into seizures following the initial hospital visit.
Officer Fraser immediately began to render aid to the child via what appeared to be patting the child on the back in concurrence with light chest compressions, letting the parents know in those moments when the child began breathing again.
As for the purpose of the original stop, Officer Fraser emphasized in a later interview that tending to an unresponsive child certainly trumps an alleged speeding violation.
“At this point, it's not about writing a ticket, stopping a speeding driver, there's an actual emergency here.”
The child was ultimately saved, which upon looking back at the bodycam footage from the incident, Officer Fraser admitted that while it’s “overwhelming” to view now, he was simply exercising his training while in the moment.
“Watching it now, it’s kind of overwhelming," the officer said, "but in the moment there’s really not much thought other than relying on the training.”
While Officer Fraser and the parents have yet to reconnect following the original incident, the Warren Police officer says he would gladly welcome the family to come and visit him at the local police station if they’d like.
When asked for what advice parents should heed when faced with a similar situation with an infant, Officer Fraser stated, “Even if you live right next door to the hospital, I would say call 911. The dispatchers will tell you what to do and the paramedics will show up, especially with children.”
Bodycam footage captured the moments when the officer calmly took control of the situation and rendered aid, resulting in the baby boy being able to breathe once again.
On August 29th, Officer Brendan Fraser was in the midst of conducting a traffic stop for what he thought was a standard case of a speeding vehicle, pulling over the driver of a blue Camaro near 12 Mile and Schoenherr Road. However, when approaching the driver of the vehicle, Officer Fraser was met with the hysterical parents of a young baby boy who’d apparently stopped breathing.
Looking back at the stop in retrospect, Officer Fraser told a local ABC News outlet that the driver was, “waving his hands out the window, and he's saying that there's a baby that's unresponsive.”
Bodycam footage from the stop shows the officer asking for the baby, with the parents at first being reasonably confused and begging for the officer to let them be on their way to the hospital.
According to Officer Fraser, when taking the child from the parents, he recalled the young boy appearing blue in the face and having a bit of saliva around his mouth.
As seen in the bodycam footage, the parents explained to Officer Fraser that they’d recently taken their baby boy to the hospital, where staff there reportedly told the family the child had COVID. However, according to the parents, the child began going into seizures following the initial hospital visit.
Officer Fraser immediately began to render aid to the child via what appeared to be patting the child on the back in concurrence with light chest compressions, letting the parents know in those moments when the child began breathing again.
As for the purpose of the original stop, Officer Fraser emphasized in a later interview that tending to an unresponsive child certainly trumps an alleged speeding violation.
“At this point, it's not about writing a ticket, stopping a speeding driver, there's an actual emergency here.”
The child was ultimately saved, which upon looking back at the bodycam footage from the incident, Officer Fraser admitted that while it’s “overwhelming” to view now, he was simply exercising his training while in the moment.
“Watching it now, it’s kind of overwhelming," the officer said, "but in the moment there’s really not much thought other than relying on the training.”
While Officer Fraser and the parents have yet to reconnect following the original incident, the Warren Police officer says he would gladly welcome the family to come and visit him at the local police station if they’d like.
When asked for what advice parents should heed when faced with a similar situation with an infant, Officer Fraser stated, “Even if you live right next door to the hospital, I would say call 911. The dispatchers will tell you what to do and the paramedics will show up, especially with children.”
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