Police in an Ohio city went above and beyond the call of duty to care for and comfort a toddler who was found wandering the street early Tuesday.
Police in Ohio went above and beyond the call of duty to care for and comfort a toddler who was found wandering the street early Tuesday, officials said.
Cincinnati police responding to a call found a two-year-old boy walking along the side of the road on Montana Avenue about 2:30 a.m., District 3 Captain Aaron Jones told INSIDE EDITION.
The child was barefoot and wearing nothing but pajamas, officials said.
“He had a soiled diaper, soiled pants,” CPD Sergeant Dan Hils told IE.
After they brought the boy into district’s headquarters, Officer Jamie Landrum went to Walgreens to buy him new clothes.
“She bought pampers, clothing and a coat for the child,” Jones said.
“She did this right out of her own pocket,” Hils noted.
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While Landrum set out to clothe the boy, Officer Will Nastold spent time with him on the floor, trying to comfort him and get him to take a nap.
Hils posted a photo of the interaction to Facebook, which has gained more than 2,000 likes and 1,000 shares.
“I had no idea this would happen; I didn’t know what ‘going viral’ meant,” Hils told IE with a laugh.
The attention surprised the officers involved as well, who felt they were just doing their job, Nils said.
“(Nastold said) ‘I was just playing with a toy with him, trying to help him nap.’ He doesn’t feel deserving. But it’s just such a positive thing,” said Hils, who serves as the newly-elected president of the Cincinnati Fraternal Order of Police, the city’s police union.
Police said the boy’s mother, 28-year-old Tanisha Caldwell, arrived at the police station about 5:30 a.m. to pick up her son.
She appeared to be intoxicated and allegedly admitted to drinking the night before, officials said.
Caldwell allegedly said the boy had gotten out of the home before. He had been found not far from his home, cops said.
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She was arrested and charged with child endangerment, police said.
Caldwell will be arraigned on Wednesday, according to court documents.
The boy was eventually placed with his aunt, Jones said.
He commended his officers, both of whom have been on the force for less than year, for their actions.
“They did go above and beyond,” he said. “I’m not surprised, because police officers nowadays are getting a very bad rap in the media… but in reality, this is more what the average police officer does; these are the types of things they’re doing every day.”
Hils agreed, saying: “This isn’t that uncommon. This is what cops do when they have the opportunity to reach out and help out an innocent kid. This is what they do.”
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