By Marlene Lenthang - NBC News
The mayor of Elyria, Ohio, has ordered an investigation after a woman alleged that police officers mistakenly raided her home and deployed explosive devices that burned her one-year-old son, who had to be hospitalized.
However, police have offered a different version of what happened on January 10, stating that they executed a search warrant at the correct address and that the boy did not "suffer any apparent and visible injuries."
Elyria Mayor Kevin A. Brubaker called the allegations "serious and troubling" and announced Saturday "a thorough review of the incident." In addition, he specified that the recordings of the officers' body cameras will be released later on Tuesday.
Photo of little Waylon after entering the hospital. via GoFundMe
The Elyria Police Department had obtained a court-authorized search warrant for a residence at 300 Parmely Avenue as part of the criminal investigation, police said in a news release Friday.
That order was executed the same day at 02:12 pm.
The Elyria Police Special Response Team deployed two distraction devices, known as flash-bangs, outside the residence, made repeated warnings, entered the home and found a woman and her 17-month-old son inside.
Courtney Price was home with her baby Waylon.
"They turned our world upside down"
She described the ordeal on Facebook, saying that "15 seconds is all it took to turn our world upside down." He said he heard a "loud bang on the door," and moments later the doors and windows burst open.
Price told local newspapers Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer on Friday that police devices were thrown at the home, causing smoke to blanket Waylon.
"I was screaming for my baby. Deputies were at the home, searching it. The little guy was clearly suffocated, turning red and blue, and everyone was passing by him. No one approached him," the mother told the media.
Price said she screamed that her baby was on a ventilator and was grabbed and handcuffed. He added that two doctors examined the child. Using a stethoscope, one of them said it "sounded clean," but she wrote, "My baby didn't sound clean."
Elyria police said the woman told officers her baby had a pre-existing medical condition, and detectives and paramedics evaluated him, "confirming that the child did not suffer any apparent or visible injuries."
Price also mentioned to detectives that she wanted to take her baby to the hospital because of his pre-existing condition, but that she lacked a car seat to transport him. The police called an ambulance.
Diagnosing Chemical Pneumonitis
Price said Waylon was admitted to a pediatric intensive care unit (ICU) after the ordeal and was diagnosed with chemical pneumonitis, an inflammation of lung tissue caused by substances, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Price alleged that Waylon had "a chemical reaction in his eyes," burns all over his body and was struggling to breathe. By Monday, he was out of the ICU, but was still recovering.
He accused the Elyria Police Department of "negligence" and causing the chemical reaction in and around the child's eyes. Price could not immediately be reached Tuesday for comment.
The Police's Contrasting Version
Elyria police, however, maintained that the boy was not harmed during the operation.
"Any allegation suggesting that the child was exposed to chemical agents, lack of medical care or neglect is not true," police said.
The department said the two flash grenades were deployed outside the home and that such devices do not cause burns or release or contain pepper spray or chemical agents.
The search warrant was for Price's address, but was issued in pursuit of a teenager who hasn't lived there for more than a year, NBC affiliate WKYC of Cleveland reported.
The mayor's office said the city has been reviewing body camera footage from the operation over the weekend, which will likely shed light on where the smoke grenades were thrown.
"Our residents demand to know what happened, and rightly so," Brubaker said in a statement Monday.
"Fortunately, our city had the technology to record the events in real-time through numerous body cameras throughout the incident. I'm especially grateful that they captured crystal clear audio and video, from various angles. I can't wait to make them public for all to see," he added.