HUNTINGTON BEACH : Police Investigate Death of Infant
An 8-month-old baby’s death is under investigation but appears to be the result of a freak accident in a highchair, Police Lt. Ed McErlain said Monday.
The child was identified by the Orange County coroner’s office on Monday as Justin Booth. The baby died at 4:35 p.m. Sunday at Children’s Hospital of Orange County in Orange, the coroner’s office said.
McErlain said the baby apparently became entangled in a safety strap in his highchair at his home on Mediterranean Drive on Saturday afternoon. The baby’s father, who was not identified, had been in a garage workshop for about 20 minutes, McErlain said, and came back to find the child unconscious, with his neck entangled in the safety strap.
The father called the 911 emergency number and was given cardiopulmonary resuscitation instructions, McErlain said. Paramedics then took the baby to Pacifica Hospital briefly and then to Children’s Hospital.
McErlain said police do not know how long the baby’s neck was caught in the safety strap.
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