BOSTON (WHDH) - Two days after a 1-year-old girl was hit by a Boston police cruiser, Police Commissioner William G. Gross says he’s glad the toddler is on the mend with a broken collar bone following what he described as “every officers’ worst nightmare.”
“She’s still recovering, and God bless her. From what we could ascertain, it’s definitely an accident, and we’re working with the family,” Gross said. “It’s just a tragic accident.”
Surveillance video showed the little girl getting struck as the officer pulled out on Shawmut Avenue in Roxbury.
Mayor Martin J. Walsh says his heart goes out to that child.
“When I saw it, it was horrific. My heart dropped,” Walsh said. “When you see a little person get hit by a car like that, it’s horrible.”
The officer who was driving stopped immediately and rushed back to help.
“Anyone would be upset. We all have kids or we know people who have kids. Officers aren’t any different,” Gross said. “We’re not robotic or immune to feelings on that one.”
With the return of summer weather, Gross said all adults have a responsibility to look out for the little ones.
“Children are innocent. You’re operating in the street, you’re not expecting a 1-year-old to be in the street,” he said. “And we’re not throwing blame out there to anyone, but no one would want to strike a child.”
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