A photo of an Alabama police officer holding an infant girl after finding her parents overdosed has gone viral.
Birmingham police Officer Michelle Burton found the baby and her three young siblings on Tuesday at a home in the Tom Brown Village public housing community, AL.com reported. Burton and other officers had been called around 9 p.m. after neighbors heard the sound of children crying and found the kids' parents unconscious.
The father, 30, was dead and the mother, 35, unresponsive. Authorities managed to revive the mother and took her to a local hospital.
The children, who are between 1 month and 7 years old, were left in the home, and Burton's instincts kicked in.
"I took all of my equipment off and got the baby and just held her, because I know babies like to be held," Burton told WBRC. "She slept and slept until she couldn't sleep anymore."
Burton's husband, Jefferson County sheriff's Sgt. Brian Burton, posted a photo of the pair on Facebook. The image has since gone viral.
"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 Burton 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 4 this morning. I've never seen her more beautiful than in this picture. What an incredible woman."
Michelle Burton told WBRC that not everyone has been as thrilled with her interaction with the child and her siblings. Some of their family members have left angry messages for her with police. However, she said she was just doing her job.
The children have since been placed in protective care.
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