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Seven-Year-Old Hero: Erica Pratt’s Incredible Escape
A story of resilience and the human spirit
I have 21 years in the Police Department, and I have never seen this kind of heroic act of bravery committed by a 7-year-old.
– Philadelphia Police Inspector William Colarulo
On the evening of Monday, July 22, 2002, seven-year-old Erica Pratt was outside her Southwest Philadelphia home, playing with her five-year-old sister and their six-year-old friend, Rani Byrd. Suddenly, two men pulled up in a white car with dark-tinted windows and called Erica over. She refused. The passenger jumped out of the car, grabbed Erica, and pulled her into the vehicle. Rani tried to save her, but the man shoved her to the ground.
With Erica kicking and screaming, the car sped away. As they drove through the streets of Philadelphia, the men bound Erica’s wrists with duct tape and blindfolded her.
In the moments after the awful event, the Pratt house became a scene of chaos. A crying Rani Byrd told the girl’s grandmother what had happened, and she called the police. The neighborhood searched for the girl until the authorities arrived.
