FROM FAITH IT: After two years of lockdowns, restrictions, and outbreaks, many are hopeful for a better 2022. There’s the longing for a turn from divisiveness, a turn toward health, unity, and altruism. And while that is certainly a possibility, the news of two abandoned newborn babies being found, one on New Year’s Eve of 2021 and the other on New Year’s Day of 2022, are both painful reminders of our fallen world, as well as opportunities for people to actively involve themselves in unselfishly helping others.
Newborn Baby Boy Found Abandoned In Box With Heartbreaking Note
Newborn Baby Found Dead Inside Duffel Bag Left Outside Chicago Fire Station Despite Safe Haven Law
Around 5 a.m. on Saturday morning, a newborn baby boy was found dead inside a duffel bag that had been left outside of a Chicago fire station
Read in People: https://apple.news/ACQ4U1vCbS42iBt0L52kITQ
From Jan. 11th, 2022:
I am so very, very deeply sadden by this news, but so very thankful the baby is alive! We are praying for the health of the baby and for the young lady who threw her baby into a garbage dumpster. I am just so very sad and speechless about this……..so very, very heartbreaking for all, especially the little baby. We also pray for the Mother and the Father of this little angel.
This tragic event prompted the New Mexico Department of Health to release this press release:
SANTA FE: The New Mexico Department of Health (DOH) is encouraging all New Mexicans to familiarize themselves with the protections offered for infants and parents, through its
Safe Haven for Infants Law. The legislation allows a parent to leave an infant, ninety days of age or less, at a safe haven site without prosecution. Designated safe haven sites include hospitals, law enforcement agencies, or fire stations that have staff on site at the time an infant is left.
The Safe Haven for Infants Act is intended to shield parents from criminal prosecution when they choose to leave infants at safe havens, as long as the child has not been subject to child abuse or neglect prior to relinquishment.
According to DOH Acting Secretary Dr. David Scrase, “This rarely used but critical law saves lives. Increasing awareness about what can be done safely and without prosecution, offers a desperately needed alternative for parents who are unable to care for their infants, including giving them up for adoption.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the highest risk for infant homicide is on the day of birth. As a result, all 50 states and Puerto Rico have enacted Safe Haven Laws to address infant abandonment and endangerment. The infant homicide rate on the day of birth decreased from 222.2 per 100,000 person-years during 1989–1998 to 74.0 during 2008–2017 (66.7% decline) but
remains at least 5.4 times higher than the rate at any other time in life.
Nationally, Safe Haven Laws, which are sometimes known as “Baby Moses Laws”, decriminalize the leaving of unharmed infants with statutorily designated entities, so that the child becomes a ward of the state. Texas was the first state to enact a “Baby Moses Law” in 1999, in reaction to 13 incidents of child abandonment in the year, three of them involving infants discovered dead.
According to the National Safe Haven Alliance, 4422 babies have been “saved to date” in the US. The site also states that 1567 were illegally abandoned from 1999 through 2020, and that in 2020, 120 babies were saved, while 37 were illegally abandoned. For more information by state, please review the
childwelfare.gov website.
