The California mom who fought off a deranged attacker while changing her baby in the bathroom of Macy\u2019s Herald Square was going off \u201ca mom\u2019s instinct,\u201d a family friend told The Post.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not surprised she did that,\u201d the friend, Justine Silva, said.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe works out. She\u2019s pretty fit,\u201d Silva said of the brave mom, who was stabbed in the back, shoulder and arm in the Thursday incident.<\/p>\n
A California mom, 38, was brutalized by a deranged attacker while changing her baby in the bathroom of Macy\u2019s Herald Square. Obtained by NY Post<\/p>\n
Kerri Aherne, the alleged attacker accused of stabbing a tourist inside a bathroom at Macy\u2019s Herald Square, is arraigned at Manhattan Criminal Court on Friday, Dec. 12, in New York. James Keivom\/Pool\/ New York Post<\/p>\n
The mom and her family were supposed to leave NYC the day after the attack but are now stuck in the Big Apple with no clear date of return, Silva added.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a holiday thing,\u201d Silva, a high school girls soccer coach who knows the family through her boyfriend, said of the couple\u2019s trip to New York.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey just had the baby not too long ago and they were just trying to get [away] on holiday. This is their first trip to New York since they had the baby.\u201d<\/p>\n
The baby is the couple\u2019s only child,\u00a0and concern for the infant was immediate after word\u00a0of the horrifying incident\u00a0spread through the family, Silva said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was concerned for her. I was worried that she might\u2019ve been hurt,\u201d Silva said, describing the\u00a010-month-old\u00a0as \u201creally calm\u201d and\u00a0sweet.<\/p>\n
The randomness of the attack made it especially jarring, Silva said, because of how close she is to the family.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are so many people in this world and it just happened to be her \u2014 someone that I know,\u201d she said. \u201cThe family is a very tight-knit family.\u201d<\/p>\n
Silva said she briefly connected with the baby\u2019s father\u00a0after the attack and described him as exhausted.<\/p>\n
The mom and her family were supposed to leave New York City the day after the attack but are now stuck in the Big Apple with no clear date of return, family friend Justine Silva told The Post. Desheania Andrews for Ny Post<\/p>\n
\u201cThey just had the baby not too long ago and they were just trying to get [away] on holiday. This is their first trip to New York since they had the baby,\u201d Silva continued. James Keivom<\/p>\n
\u201cHe probably was up all night and it was stressful for him,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s his only child. He is an amazing dad.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m happy that she\u2019s gonna be okay,\u201d Silva added.<\/p>\n