On a scorching July afternoon in 2016, what began as a routine call for Keene, New Hampshire police turned into one of the strangest rescues in recent memory. Lieutenant Jason Short rushed to a Walmart parking lot after a 911 call reported a baby locked inside a car under the brutal summer sun.
Temperatures were climbing past 90 degrees. Witnesses described seeing tiny feet sticking out from under a blanket in the back seat of a parked sedan. To any trained officer, it sounded like a life-or-death situation.
The Emergency
When Lt. Short arrived, he found a silver car parked in direct sunlight, its windows sealed tight. Through the glass, he saw what looked like an infant wrapped in a blanket. The child wasn’t moving.
“There wasn’t time to think,” he later said. “If that baby was real, seconds could mean everything.”
Short smashed the window and reached inside. But the instant he touched the “baby,” his stomach dropped. The skin felt wrong—too cool, too stiff. When he tried to open its mouth, it didn’t move. That’s when he realized the truth.
It wasn’t a baby at all. It was a doll.
The Realization
The discovery left him stunned. “For a moment, I thought I was too late,” Short recalled. “Then I realized there had never been a baby.”
The doll was a “reborn”—a hyper-realistic silicone doll crafted to look, feel, and even weigh like a real newborn. The detail was so lifelike that even a veteran officer was fooled.
The Owner Returns
Moments later, the car’s owner, 65-year-old Carolynne Seiffert, returned from a nearby salon. Known locally as a collector of lifelike dolls, she had left her reborn doll, “Ainslie,” strapped into a car seat while she ran errands.
“I never thought anyone would mistake it for a real baby,” she said later. “But seeing what happened, I understand why.”
The doll had cost her $2,300, part of an extensive collection of reborn dolls she used for comfort and artistry.
Standing by His Actions
Despite the bizarre mix-up, Lt. Short stood firm. “I’d do it again without hesitation,” he said. “If there’s even a chance a child is in danger, you act first. You don’t wait to find out.”
The Keene Police Department supported his actions, emphasizing that protecting life always comes before property. “You can replace a window,” the chief said. “You can’t replace a child.”
A Broader Reminder
The story quickly went viral, both for its absurdity and its underlying truth. While this “rescue” ended in relief, child safety groups pointed out that dozens of real children die each year from being left in hot cars.
“Lt. Short did the right thing,” said Janette Fennell, founder of Kids and Cars. “His instincts were correct. In real cases, that kind of quick action saves lives.”
The Aftermath
The incident also brought attention to the growing “reborn doll” community. These dolls, used by collectors and individuals coping with loss or loneliness, have been mistaken for real babies before—sometimes leading to scenes like this one.
To prevent further confusion, Seiffert began placing stickers on her car windows reading, “Reborn Dolls On Board — Not Real Children.” “I’d rather replace a window than have someone ignore a real emergency,” she said.
The Lesson That Endured
For Lt. Short, the day was a mix of embarrassment and affirmation. “It sounds funny now,” he admitted, “but in that moment, I thought I was holding a dead child. You never forget that feeling.”
Nearly a decade later, the story still resurfaces online — half cautionary tale, half testament to human instinct.
In the end, no one was hurt. A car window was broken, a doll was saved, and an officer’s compassion became the punchline to a strange but meaningful reminder: sometimes, caring too much is far better than not caring at all.
“If it happens again,” Short said simply, “I’ll break the window every time.”