Labor pain = gas station birth, near arrest

[janelle144]

Labor pain = gas station birth, near arrest

Police thought mother was driving a stolen carThe Associated Press

Updated: 8:28 a.m. ET March 31, 2005KETTERING, Ohio

- A woman rushing to a hospital to give birth hit a few stops along the way — first at a gas station where she delivered the baby herself, then when confused police ordered her out of the car at gunpoint.



Debbie Coleman, whose 3- and 4-year-old daughters were asleep in the back seat, pulled over at a gas station just after midnight Tuesday.

“I asked if she needed help, and she just leaned back in the seat, hollered a little, and I looked down and there was the baby’s head,” said station co-owner Lloyd Goff, who was alerted to the emergency at pump No. 7 by a customer.

Goff said Coleman “threw her leg over the steering wheel, groaned once, and the rest of the baby came out.

“She caught that baby, put it to her chest, gave me a look, like, ’I gotta go,’ closed the door, put the van in gear and away she went.”

Stolen van?
A customer at the gas station in suburban Dayton tried to give police a heads-up about Coleman’s situation, but a mix-up involving the license plate number had them thinking the van was stolen.

As officers went looking for her, Coleman headed for the hospital, naked below the waist and with the baby boy in her arm. His umbilical cord was still attached.

“I kept pulling over, making sure (the baby) was all right, breathing,” she said.

Meanwhile, police had straightened out the license plate issue. But another caller mistakenly reported someone trying to throw a baby from a van.

Coleman said she noticed several cruisers following her before one cut her off. With guns drawn, officers ordered her out of the van with her hands up.

“I opened the door and said, ’I just had a baby’ and just let them see everything,” she said.

Officers sent Coleman on and let the hospital know she was coming.

Coleman was discharged Wednesday. Her 6-pound, 8-ounce son, Richard Lee Coleman Jr., remained in intensive care.

© 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material

[bestmidwest]

That poor woman! I nearly had Eric in the car, but Mark was driving...so I can't compare. It was scary though!

[mayfly]

OH MY GOSH! How in the world did she have the presense of mind to continue to drive? I would have called an ambulance. I had terrible contractions with the placenta, I just can't imagine driving through all of that! Horrible, I hope the baby is ok.

[Brenda2000]

Geezz,,,..I thought the same thing, why didn't they call an ambulance instead of letting her finish the drive ato the hospital?

That never would have happened with me. both my DD's wouldn't come out untill they had some help from a doctor.

[janelle144]

I think they did try to stop her like the police pulled her over and she told them she just had a baby not stolen a car. Then they let her go on driving herself to the hospital. Amazing unless she insisted on doing it which is truly more amazing. I would be screaming for someone to call 911. If I saw a policeman I'd let him drive me.

[Mouse7088]

Yipes!

[whitequeen96]

All I can say is "Wowwwww!!!