Police: Baby hit head after strap came loose

Boy listed in stable condition

NORTH MIAMI, Fla. – A 4-month-old boy named Malichi hit his head on the floor after falling from a handheld harness when a strap came loose, sending him to the hospital Wednesday, according to a North Miami police report.

According to police, the boy's mother, Tiffine Dennard, placed him inside the harness without checking the straps. After a few minutes of playing, one came out of the clasp and he fell on the floor, hitting his head.

Police say Dennard calmed him down, fed him, and played with him for about an hour to keep him from falling asleep. She called a woman to her apartment, who police identified as a registered nurse, to check on her son, but fire rescue wasn't called.

The boy later began crying and vomiting.

Dennard cleaned him up, then left to pick up her two other children from school, police say. When she returned home, she noticed the boy wasn't awake and wouldn't respond to her. She then called 911.

"It could be an accident. I would say it's an accident because we all our parents and you know how things work out when you have children," said Marie Matthew, a neighbor.

"She's a great mom," said Stephanie Johnson, the boy's aunt. "It's nothing more than an accident. She's a great mom."

Malichi was airlifted to Jackson Memorial Hospital, where he was listed in stable condition Thursday.

No charges have been filed.