It’s a simple yet striking image: An Alabama police officer is seen holding a little girl in her arms.
But it’s the context surrounding the photo that has caused it to go viral. On Tuesday police in Birmingham, Alabama discovered the little girl along with her three siblings after neighbours heard them crying in their apartment.
When they investigated, they discovered both parents were suffering from apparent drug overdoses, leaving their four kids – the oldest of whom was 7 – alone and terrified in the apartment.
“It was a real sad situation,” South Precinct Lt. David Rockett told AL.com “At least one of the parents survived. If there’s a silver lining, it’s that.”
Birmingham police responded to a 911 call at an apartment in a public housing community just before 9 p.m. Upon entering the apartment they discovered the father, 30, dead on the kitchen floor of an apparent drug overdose.
The children’s mother, 35, was unconscious and unresponsive on the couch. She was given a shot of Narcan and rushed to hospital.
Police also found four children: a seven-year-old girl, a three-year-old boy, a two-year-old boy and a one-month-old girl.
It’s the youngest of these four that police officer Michelle Burton was photographed holding once the children were transported to back to the police station.
“My thing was–I just wanted to snuggle her,” Burton told WIAT News in Alabama. “I just wanted to pick her up. I wanted to hold her.”
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Burton, whose nickname at the station is “Mamma”, says she let her maternal instincts take over during what must have been a traumatic night for the little girl.
“I took all of my equipment off and got the baby and just held her because I know babies like to be held,” Burton said. “She slept and slept until she couldn’t sleep anymore.”
The photo was shot by Burton’s husband Brian, who posted it to his personal Facebook page along with a touching tribute to his wife’s kindness.
“Last night, my wife Michelle Burton told me she would be late getting off work because of a call she was on where the parents of four small children had both overdosed,” Brian wrote.
“Michelle said the father was dead and the mother was critical. She spent the rest of the night taking care of these babies. She got home at four this morning. I’ve never seen her more beautiful than in this picture. What an incredible woman.”
The photo went viral shortly after Brian Burton posted it online, with nearly 2,000 shares as of this writing.
“A police officer’s job is very hard and very demanding. We come across a lot of scenes of a tragic nature, especially when children are involved,” South Precinct commander Capt. Ron Sellers said in a statement about the photo. “Our first priority is to help the injured, but then we turn our focus on the children to make sure they are safe and well-taken care of. We’re glad our officer was able to help here.”