Alexandria Police save newborn found without a heartbeat

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Two Alexandria Police Officers saved the life of a newborn that was found not breathing and without a heartbeat.

Police received a frantic 9-1-1 call just minutes after midnight from a frantic caller stating a newborn baby was lifeless when an Alexandria woman suddenly gave birth. APD Officers Hiltz and Reilly entered an apartment in the 3800 block of Executive Avenue, rushing to locate the baby. They found a newborn not breathing and without a heartbeat. 

Officer Hiltz began performing CPR while Officer Reilly managed to keep the family calm. After two rounds of CPR, Officer Hiltz located a pulse and the baby began to "fuss", as Officer Hiltz described it.

According to police, after a short stay in the NICU, baby Luis IV and his family returned home.

"My entire focus was on making sure baby Luis was going to be okay," said APD Officer Hiltz. "It felt amazing to hear him cry. In that moment, all the stress and fear of the situation just left me."

With more than four years of APD service, Hiltz humbly says, "I’m just lucky to get to go to work and do the job I love. It's this kind of call, getting to help baby Luis and his family, that makes this job so rewarding and worth it." A week later, the officers were able to visit baby Luis and his family. "You could just feel the excitement and pride of Mom and Dad," Hiltz said talking about their recent visit.