Baby boy abandoned at church door
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Baby boy abandoned at church door
By ROBIN FITZGERALD
GULFPORT - A newborn abandoned on the doorsteps of a church will be placed in
state custody after the blond-haired boy is released from a hospital, police
said.
Nurses caring for the baby are calling him Matthew, said the Rev. Adam Cooper,
who found the child wrapped in towels Wednesday near the office door at St.
Matthew Evangelical Lutheran Church on 31st Avenue.
Police said the baby appears healthy, and the state Department of Human
Services will take custody of him when he is released from Memorial Hospital at
Gulfport. A hospital spokeswoman declined to comment on the baby's condition or
to release any information.
The abandonment marks the first time police and prosecutors have needed to
review the Baby Drop-Off Law enacted in 2001 to deter parents from leaving
newborns in Dumpsters or other unsafe places.
Prosecutor Charlie Wood said he has been with the District Attorney's Office 14
years and has never heard of a newborn left in a public place.
"I've heard of it in other places around the country, but not here," he said.
The baby's umbilical cord was attached and he had not been cleaned after birth,
Cooper said. His church is known for helping the homeless and hungry, and
people often drop off unwanted puppies and kittens, the minister said, "but
this is a first."
"For whatever reason, the Lord must have directed the mother to leave him here
where he can have a chance in life. I'm grateful he wasn't aborted and wasn't
dropped off in a Dumpster. By the grace of God, someone who has been praying
for a child a long time will have a baby."
Cooper said he noticed a pile of rags near the office door when he arrived
around 8:30 a.m.
"It didn't surprise me because we have street people leaving things around here
all the time," he said. "Half an hour later, someone came in looking for
something to eat. He told the secretary the towels left by the door were
moving."
Police Lt. Alfred Sexton said detectives want to talk to the baby's parents to
get information on his medical history. Whether the parents will be prosecuted
if found isn't clear.
"We don't know the circumstances," he said.
The Baby Drop-Off Law allows parents to hand over newborns 72 hours old or
younger to an emergency medical service provider, such as a hospital, or a
state-licensed adoption agency, without fear of criminal prosecution.
"Whoever dropped the baby off didn't comply with the letter of the law," Wood
said, "but they may have complied with the spirit of the law."
The law is more specific on places where babies should not be left, such as
doctors' or dentists' offices.
Child protection workers say it is rare to find abandoned babies in public
places, that it is more common for new mothers to abandon babies in hospitals.
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A good friend will come and bail you out of jail . . . but, a true friend will
be sitting next to you saying, "Damn . . . that was fun!"
-----Unknown