Wednesday, March 10, 2010

Carlos the Seven-Year-Old Hero

Finally, a feel good story after a couple of weeks of covering tragedy. Our story today could have been another bad, bad situation had seven year old Carlos not been so brave, hiding in the bathroom and calling 911 during a home invasion robbery.

First, click on the link below and watch the story. Pictures speak louder than words in this case.











Watch the video here.


Cool kid, huh?

Impressive, right from the start. He walked into the room packed full of media with only the slightest look of nerves. After meeting the dispatcher who'd walked him through the call, the deputy picked him up and put him on a chair to reach the microphones. While the deputy was introducing him, I noticed the boy's mouth moving. What the heck? I thought. So I looked closer. He was silently counting the cameras, "...thirteen, fourteen, fifteen..." and there were a lot of cameras, as you can see.

Carlos worked the crowd. He had us laughing and smiling. He engaged us with his eyes, looking directly at those who asked the questions, scanning the room and the cameras. So often kids--even ones who want to be on TV "more than anything in the world!"--get nervous once the big camera is pointed their way and totally clam up. Not Carlos. What a kid!

Feeling good at the end of the day is all too rare in the news biz, but thanks to Carlos and his last, "that was my sister!" (referring to the screaming heard at the end of the 911 tape) he had me not just feeling good, but grinning like a fool.

Thanks, Carlos, for making it a swell day!

1 comment:

  1. My pc wouldn't let me see the video, but that's what you hope for as a parent, a bright, alert kid, who can cope under a stressful situation like this.

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