To a Mesquite, Nevada mother and her three-year-old son, Officer Quinn Averett is a hero.
Averett was less than a block away when a call came in that three-year-old Damien Valencia was choking on a Jawbreaker at a convenience store.
The cop rushed to the store and immediately started performing a reverse-Heimlich maneuver on the boy, the entirety of which was recorded on Averett’s body cam.
Damien and his mother Mariana Cardiel visited the police station days later to give their hero an emotional thank you.
“When I saw him, I just started crying,” Cardiel said.
“I cried a little bit because it really touched me, because I have children of my own,” said Averett.
The Mesquite police department and city council are set to present Averett with an award for his bravery in January.
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