Lifeguard charged after 5-year-old boy nearly drowns

STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) - A lifeguard who was on duty at a Connecticut sports complex when a young boy nearly drowned has been charged with reckless endangerment and risk of injury to a child.

Police say Zachary Stein, 23, of New Canaan, did not appear to be distracted while working at Chelsea Piers Connecticut in Stamford on Aug. 3, but surveillance video shows he didn't notice the 5-year-old boy underwater for about four minutes.

Stein then pulled the boy from the water and gave him CPR. Police say the boy was hospitalized and made a rapid recovery.

Stein's lawyer says a mistake does not constitute a crime, especially considering Stein's role in saving the boy.

An American Lifeguard Association representative tells the Stamford Advocate it is rare for a lifeguard to be charged criminally.