By Police1 Staff
ROSEVILLE, Calif. — A California officer is being praised for rescuing a young boy with autism from oncoming traffic.
On Saturday, Officer Donald Mason saw a young boy running into a road and onto oncoming traffic, KCRA reports. Mason said cars were “swerving out of the way” as the 8-year-old made it to a McDonald’s parking lot.
When a bystander attempted to corral him, the boy became frightened and ran back to the busy street. That’s when Mason stepped in.
“I just ran and I got him right in the center median,” Mason said. “I just picked him up and avoided a little collision.”
Mason got the boy’s personal information from his med alert bracelet and drove him home. The officer noticed the boy’s home had “locks on every single door” and that his family “knew he was an escape artist.”
It turns out that one of the boy’s siblings didn’t lock the door leading to the garage. The boy opened the doors to the refrigerator and freezer in the garage and climbed up the shelves to open the garage door button.
The boy’s mother said her son operates at the level of a 3-year-old and likes the play area of the McDonald’s he went to. The family said they are grateful for Mason and happy the boy came home safe.
“I did what every other person would do in that situation,” Mason said. “I know I can speak for anyone else in this department, any department in California. That’s what we get into this job for is to save people.”