'Felt like a dream:' Good Samaritan discusses comforting young girl after 27th and Loomis crash
MILWAUKEE -- We're learning more about the heartbreaking moment officers pulled an abandoned three-year-old girl from the scene of a car crash near 27th and Loomis. A witness jumped into action to comfort the child after the adults in the car ran off.
Suspects run from Milwaukee police following crash near 27th and Loomis
You can still see tire tracks in the median at 27th and Loomis where the car landed up. The good Samaritan says the little girl told her that her dad was the one driving, and she knew that what he was doing was dangerous.
In the midst of a chaotic car crash, Charlene Sandberg emerged as a source of comfort.
"The car came flying through, and he hit the car in front of me. It spun, and spun and landed right there" Sandberg explained. "I slammed on my breaks, and threw my car into park. I felt like it was a dream -- like it wasn't real."
Suspects run from Milwaukee police following crash near 27th and Loomis
Witness cell phone video taken at 27th and Loomis shows two men running from the smashed up vehicle, away from officers into a field. Sandberg says what happens next was the most shocking of all.
"I see this officer taking this little girl out of the car, and I just ran over," said Sandberg. "And the police officer, he gave her to me."
Instinct kicked in for the Milwaukee grandmother, who sat with the girl in the squad car for half an hour while police continued their investigation.
Crash near 27th and Loomis in Milwaukee
Suspects run from Milwaukee police following crash near 27th and Loomis
"She had no marks on her face, no physical marks," said Sandberg. "But the trauma that you could see in her eyes, and how scared she was... you just take that to heart."
Sandberg says she asked the girl what happened. Her response brought Sanders to tears.
"'Daddy, too fast. Daddy, stop, it's too fast,'" said Sandberg. "Those words are going to ring in my head."
Milwaukee police say officers had tried to pull over the car for an unspecified violation. That's when the suspects began driving erratically, and lost control.
27th and Loomis
"Who does that? Whatever reason, pull over and take responsibility for whatever it is," said Sandberg. "You have a baby in the back seat of that car."
Despite the frustrating situation, Sandberg says above all, she feels grateful she was in the right place at the right time.
Crash near 27th and Loomis in Milwaukee courtesy: Wardo
"She leaned on me, she hugged me," said Sandberg. "When the police officer was taking her, she kind of didn't want to let me go."
Police say officers also found a gun inside the car, and both suspects were arrested near the scene. The driver was also wanted on numerous other charges.