Glendale police officer reunites with toddler he helped save

James Colvin was a block away when he got the call of a “child down” in a Glendale neighborhood one Sunday morning last April.

When the Glendale police officer pulled up his patrol car, he saw a 2-year-old boy, unresponsive on the concrete driveway, taking short, erratic breaths.

Clayton Cha had just tumbled 22 feet out of a bedroom window.

A certified EMT, Colvin immediately recognized signs of brain swelling and stabilized the boy until paramedics arrived.

“I didn’t think. I just did what I was trained to do,” Colvin said.

He followed the ambulance to Los Angeles County USC Medical Center, where he stood for several hours at the boy’s bedside, while doctors and nurses put a device in his skull to measure brain pressure and worked to control back-to-back seizures.

That day, and those that followed, were the most traumatic for Clayton’s parents, who learned that Clayton had sustained four skull fractures.

Jennifer Cha imagined only two possibilities for her son’s future — either he’d die or he’d be completely dependent.

Clayton underwent surgery and spent 54 nights in the hospital before he was allowed to go home a couple of weeks shy of his third birthday.

1/11

Clayton Cha, 3, runs for the door after giving Glendale police officer James Colvin a hug at the Glendale Police Department on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

2/11

Looking sleepy, Clayton Cha, 3, rests his head on his mother Jennifer Cha’s shoulder as she talks with Glendale police officer James Colvin at the Glendale Police Department on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

3/11

Clayton Cha, 3, starts to get a little mischievous with Glendale police officer James Colvin at the Glendale Police Department on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

4/11

Clayton Cha, 3, plays with a Glendale Police Department badge sticker on his nose as his smiley-eyed sister Camryn, 6, watches at the Glendale Police Department. The Cha family was there to thank Officer James Colvin, who was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton last April, when he fell on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

5/11

Clayton Cha presented Officer James Colvin with a painting. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

6/11

Clayton Cha, 3, of Glendale, runs into the arms of Glendale Police Officer James Colvin to say goodbye after meeting with him to thank him at the Glendale Police Department on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

7/11

Clayton Cha, 3, of Glendale, is lowered into his chair by Glendale Police Officer James Colvin under the watchful eye of Clayton’s mother Jennifer. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

8/11

Jennifer Cha of Glendale hugs and thanks Glendale police officer James Colvin at the Glendale Police Department on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

9/11

The Chas walk with Glendale Police Officer James Colvin at the Glendale Police Department to thank him on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

10/11

For a while, Glendale Police Officer James Colvin had to chase and keep up with the antics of 3-year-old Clayton Cha, of Glendale at the Glendale Police Department on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

11/11

Glendale Police Officer James Colvin holds Clayton Cha, 3, of Glendale, next to mother Jennifer Cha, and Clayton’s sister Camryn, 6, at the Glendale Police Department on Thursday, Jan. 22, 2016. Last April, Colvin was the first on the scene to treat then 2-year-old Clayton, who had fallen on his head from 22-feet onto concrete.  (Tim Berger / Staff Photographer)

Since then, he’s undergone physical and occupational therapies. His vision remains affected, and the left side of his body is weak, but doctors are hopeful that he will make a full recovery, his mother said.

“He survived the unimaginable,” Jennifer Cha said. “I can’t help but think, ‘miracle,’ when I think about what he went through.”

The morning of the accident, Clayton opened the blinds, reached for the window latch and pushed the screen off before he fell out.

“The rule is you’re not allowed to touch the blinds, you’re not allowed to touch the windows,” Jennifer Cha said. “As soon as dad stepped out of the room, that’s what he went for.”

In the months that followed the accident, Colvin frequently thought of Clayton and would contact the boy’s father for updates on his recovery.

On Friday, for the first time since the accident, the pair met again.

“Hi, buddy, how are you?” Colvin asked, greeting Clayton with a high five as the boy scampered into the Glendale police station, clutching a homemade drawing for his “superhero.”

“It touched me that he really cared about how my son was doing, to take time out of his busy schedule to call and get updates,” Jennifer Cha said. “It was important for me personally to come and thank everybody involved in the rescue.”

The visit marked the first time in Colvin’s 11 years as a police officer that someone has come to the station to personally thank him.

“It’s awesome, that’s why you do this job,” Colvin said. “Everything goes to that kid — he’s a superhero.”

A month after Clayton was released from the hospital, his family threw him a joint birthday and welcome-home party with, of course, a Man of Steel theme.

“We call him Super-Claytie,” his mom said.

--

Alene Tchekmedyian, alene.tchekmedyian@latimes.com

Twitter: @atchek