Good Samaritan

Around 21 states in the U.S. have a “Good Samaritan” regulation, which allows the passer-by to break into a vehicle and begin a rescue if an abandoned child appears to be locked inside. Given such laws, Ben was within his rights to break into the car. He did the right thing and ended up saving the toddler’s life. 

Not In Trouble

Jeanne Pierce, an officer at Tulsa Police Department, made a statement saying, “Within minutes, that child could have passed out and become ill from an injury due to the heat. Time was of the essence in that situation. We’d rather have a broken windshield than a child’s death. Any individual wouldn’t be in trouble with us in that situation because they saved the life of that child.”

Going Viral

When Nikki posted the whole incident on her Facebook, the story went viral. People were sending out comments praising Ben for what he did. Several media companies covered this story. Fox23 News even made a whole video and interviewed Ben and Nikki about the incident.

A Hero

In her interview, Nikki mentioned how scared she was, “I was scared because I don’t want to be in trouble. But Ben just jumped right into the action and didn’t even hesitate.” In her Facebook post, Nikki called Ben a hero for saving the baby’s life. “I’m just very proud of Ben. I’m glad he knew what to do.” Nikki said to Fox23 News

Honoring The Hero

Safe Kids Tulsa Area shared Nikki’s opinion as they honored Ben with a Badge Of Courage certification. The organization is a local branch of the international Safe Kids Worldwide. It aims to provide supervision to all to help in stopping Children from getting injured.

Saved A Life

The coordinator who provided the certificate to Ben on behalf of the organization, said, “This year so far, we have lost 34 children nationwide (after they were left in cars). Fortunately, in Oklahoma, we haven’t lost any and thanks to Ben, he for sure saved one of those children who could have been a statistic.”