Child Falls Out Manhattan Apartment Window, Dies Days Before 4th Birthday – NBC

A 3-year-old boy who had been jumping on a bed fell out a window of a fourth-floor Harlem apartment building Friday and died, according to his grandmother and police. It was three days before his fourth birthday.

The child, identified as Daniel Galeas, was found unconscious in the back area of the 40-unit building on 133rd Street shortly before 10:30 a.m. He had injuries indicating he had fallen from an elevated position, according to police. Cops say the bed was right next to the window and Galeas just fell out — and straight down.

He was found in a stairwell that leads to the basement. Galeas would have turned 4 on Monday, Oct. 11.

The child’s listed home address is a few blocks away, at an apartment building on 137th Street, according to police. Galeas’ grandmother told News 4 his aunt was watching him and other children Friday morning at the time he fell.

According to the NYPD, there were kids as old as 12 in the apartment at the time and ones younger than Galeas as well. They were siblings and cousins, they said.

Galeas’ mother was working her security job in the Bronx when he fell, the grandmother said. He was pronounced dead at a hospital a short time after emergency crews responded to the call.

It wasn’t clear if the aunt or anyone else was with Galeas in the room at the time he fell out of the window, which had an air conditioning unit in place, according to photos obtained by News 4.

Police also confirmed the AC unit was in place. It was held in the window by cardboard and the entire side panel was pushed out when Galeas fell. The family told News 4 building management allegedly failed to secure the AC unit in the window of the apartment, while building management says the family installed the unit on their own. Management claimed the unit was too small for the area and could not be secured properly when asked about the situation by News 4.

The NYPD says detectives remained at the scene through late morning and into the afternoon. They are looking into whether charges should be filed in the case.

News 4 has reached out to the city’s Department of Health for additional clarification on window security regulations — and associated responsibilities — in cases where children under age 10 live in a home.