Colorado cop saves choking newborn at red light

An Aurora, Colorado, police officer is being hailed as a hero for stepping in to help a newborn in distress after a mother urgently sought help.

Earlier this month, Officer Jerry Padilla was stopped at an intersection when he heard honking behind him and a panicked mother handed him her one-week-old baby who wasn’t breathing. Body camera footage released this week shows him immediately beginning life-saving efforts.

Padilla performed CPR and tried to clear the baby’s airway, working for nearly five minutes, alternating between back blows and chest compressions while encouraging the infant to breathe. “When I heard the baby cry, it was a relieving moment for sure,” he says about when the child began breathing again.

Paramedics arrived and took over care, while Padilla stayed to translate for the Spanish-speaking mother and explain that her baby was stable.

On Wednesday, he reunited with the grateful mother and her infant. Reflecting on the experience, Padilla says, “In moments like that it’s hard to think, you just act.” He also encouraged others to learn CPR, adding, “You never know when you’ll need it.”