Child Critical After Becoming Entangled in Seat Belt

COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- A child is in critical condition after being choked by a seat belt Monday evening.

DeAndre Harris, 5, was entangled when a seat belt strap became too tight while his mother was driving on Interstate 95 in Prince George's County, police said.

When a trooper got to the scene he found the boy choking with a seat belt around his neck. The officer was unable to release the belt and had to cut it out of the car.

The child was not breathing, so the trooper immediately performed CPR until medical units arrived.

The child was taken to Laurel Hospital and later flown to Children's Hospital, where he is recovering.

Police interviewed a number of Harris' relatives, including his mother, 38-year-old Yuko Harris, of Baltimore. The car was taken to the barracks in College Park, where crime scene technicians are investigating.

A 2-year-old boy who appears to be the child's brother also was in the back seat in a booster seat at the time.

It's unclear how the child got entangled and whether he was wearing a seat belt at the time, police said, but they do not believe foul play was involved.

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