Local Family Mourns Accidental Death of Baby

are reminding parents not to fall asleep in bed with their newborns and young babies after a young White Lake couple woke up to find their child unresponsive.

Police Chief Edward Harris said police responded to a 911 call at 7:58 a.m. Friday from a home in the Whispering Meadows Subdivision.

When they arrived, officers found a nonresponsive 2-month-old child. The child was transported to Huron Valley Hospital but was pronounced dead shortly after arrival.

Harris said the medical examiner performed an autopsy Saturday and ruled the cause of death to be compression asphyxiation, meaning the child had suffocated. The medical examiner also ruled the incident as an accident.

Harris said the case will have to be forwarded to the Oakland County Prosecutor's Office for review, a standard procedure.

"It's a tragic accident," Harris said. "We've all fallen asleep with our babies; it's something you just don't think about. We're very sorry for their loss. This was a tough case."

Highland man suspected in Hartland Thefts

The Livingston County Sheriff's Department used Facebook to help track down and arrest a 20-year-old Highland Township man suspected of shoplifting from the in Hartland.

A deputy was able to identify the suspect on the social media website after a Walmart security officer told police the vehicle he left in was that of a former employee, a police report said. The deputy was able to match the image of the suspect among the former employee's friends with an image in a video of the suspect in the store, the report said.

The suspect — who could face one felony and one misdemeanor charge of retail fraud after police say he admitted to the thefts — was found with many of the stolen items at an apartment he shared with the former employee. The former employee, along with another man present during the arrest, denied knowing the suspect had stolen the items.

Police say the suspect stole 62 items worth nearly $2,000 on Sept. 25, then returned Sept. 27 and took an additional 15 items valued at more than $300. Items reported stolen ranged from Sony PlayStation 3 video games to personal products, such as teeth whiteners, anti-stress tablets and cologne.

Police also found goods from the in Hartland in the suspect's apartment, but the man denied taking them, saying someone else had. Police have yet to confirm the theft with Meijer, a police report said.

The case has been submitted to the Livingston County Prosecutor's Office for review.

Vehicle taken from White Lake home

Police are asking people to be on the lookout for a stolen 1992 White hard-top Jeep Laredo.

Harris said the vehicle was reported missing at 8 a.m. Saturday from a home on Van Gordon Avenue in White Lake.

"The owner said it had been parked on her side lawn and was last seen Friday night," Harris said.

The vehicle has been entered into the Law Enforcement Information Network (LEIN) system as stolen, and the incident remains under investigation.

For questions about this crime report, email brooke.meier@patch.com.