An investigation is underway after police in Ohio raided the wrong home, and left a 17-month-old boy seriously injured.
The incident took place last Wednesday (January 10) at around 2:15PM when a swarm of cops from the Elyira Police Special Response Team burst into a home on Parmely Avenue, as reported by NBC News.
The response team deployed two diversionary devices, known as "flash-bangs," outside the residence, and found mom Courtney Price, and her 17-month-old Waylon May inside.
The incident was captured on a ring camera, and revealed that officers waited only about six seconds between the time they knocked on the door and yelled for the occupants to "come to the door".
Watch below:It has been reported that police tossed two flash bangs through the window during the raid, and the grenade was placed near Price's son, who was sitting in a swing near the window, per the Daily Mail.
"I froze at the top of the steps. I kept saying, 'I'm scared. My baby's in here, he’s on a ventilator.' Then I came down the steps and they put me in handcuffs," the terrified mother said.
Price told Fox8 that firearms were pointed at her and she feared she'd be hit if she ran to her baby, recalling: "One second everything was normal, 15 seconds later our world was flipped upside down."
Once the mom was handcuffed, police took her outside, and later brought her back in to check on her baby boy. The little one was born premature and has pulmonary hypertension - a severe form of lung disease - and an atrial septal defect - which is a hole in the heart.
Bodycam footage shows her telling police and paramedics that Waylon seemed mostly fine, but she was worried about his breathing. "I mean, just the breathing isn’t normal, but like he’s OK," she said.
Elyria police disclosed in a statement that the child's mother told them that her baby had a pre-existing medical condition. Lifecare Paramedics were then called onto the scene and assessed Waylon before taking him to a nearby hospital.
Price and Waylon were sent home once the hospital said the baby's condition had "nothing to do with the raid," but the following morning, the mom said her son "quit breathing" so she adjusted his ventilator, but he didn't improve.
She then called 911 and they were taken to a hospital and transferred to UH Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital. "Then at Rainbow Babies, we were told that he needed six more liters of oxygen, his ventilator needed turned up... he had chemical pneumonitis, which is inflammation of the lungs and irritation of the lungs, and he had a chemical reaction and in and around his eyes," Price said.
A GoFundMe titled "Justice for Waylon" has been set up for the baby's medical supplies, bills, gas, and necessities.
"The negligence from Elyria Police Department caused my baby to have burned eyes, burned chest, burned arm, burned neck," Price wrote on the fundraiser site. "They caused my baby to stop breathing for a few seconds this morning. They caused my baby to struggle to breathe. They caused my baby to have to go all day without eating. They caused my baby to go through horrendous pain."
The mom wrote in an update that, as of Monday (January 14), Waylon was moved out of the ICU and moved into a regular room, noting: "He finally got to eat for the first time an hour ago. He handled it kinda well, they’re going to try to run his feeds a little slower to see if that helps him be a little more comfortable."
Price also claimed that she still hasn't gotten an apology from the Elyria police. Meanwhile, Elyria maintained that the child was not injured during the operation.
"Any allegation suggesting the child was exposed to chemical agents, lack of medical attention or negligence is not true," police said, per NBC News, adding that the flash-bangs don't produce a continuous burn, release, or have any pepper gas or chemical agents.
Elyria Mayor Kevin A. Brubaker described the frightening incident as "serious and disturbing," and announced "a complete review of the incident."
Price is accusing the Elyria Police Department of negligence and inadequate detective work.
.jpg_HZExQu?tr=h-184)
.png_gK1BuQ?tr=h-184)
.jpg_9F9duS?tr=h-184)