September 28, 2015 – 009th District
965B – “I’m going to County then…”
A split second decision that Superintendent McCarthy thinks may have saved the life of an eleven month old child.
A Sergeant, 965,called in “loud reports” in the area near 53rd and Aberdeen. Many 009th District and city-wide units responded to the scene. What 965B saw when they arrived at the location was a woman running up to them holding a child wrapped in a blanket. The blanket was blood stained and the child was screaming. The Officers noticed that the child was wounded and realized that they had mere seconds to decide what they were going to do because there were no ambulances on scene.
They did not hesitate…965B responded instinctively, one partner the driver, one partner carrying the wounded innocent child in the back seat, while he applied pressure to the wound, accompanied by the victim’s aunt.
In the next few seconds the driver called in “Emergency 965B…we have the child (that is) shot in my car…see if the firehouse at 43rd and Ashland has an ambulance right now.” Within seconds the dispatcher notified 965B that there was no “ambo” in that firehouse at the moment.
Again 965B, without pause, responded on their radio…” I’m going to County (Stroger Hospital) then..”
Within minutes, the officers made it to Stroger Hospital with the young victim.
When asked about why they responded the way they did…965B said … “We just tried to do something positive, the best we knew how.”