Police often warn against leaving children in hot cars due to the serious risk of heatstroke or even death. It happens often enough that officers are on alert during hot days.
Officer Jason Short of Keene, New Hampshire, responded to a call about a baby left in a hot car in a Walmart parking lot. Rushing to the scene, he saw what appeared to be an infant wrapped in a blanket. Fearing the worst, he broke the window and pulled the lifeless-looking “baby” out — only to discover it was a realistic doll.
The doll belonged to Carolynne Seiffer, who uses lifelike dolls to cope with the loss of her son. She returned to find a broken window and a crowd around her $2,000 doll, Ainsley.
Though briefly embarrassed, Officer Short said he had no regrets. “I would never assume it’s a doll. I’d always act as if it’s a child.” The police department later paid the $300 to replace the window.