A saving grace for babies (TX child abandonment law)

[CShine]

The tiny baby they call Emily napped peacefully in the arms of the only mother she's ever known. She was, after all, one of the lucky ones. Just 16 days earlier, the newborn had been abandoned. But her birth mother at least had taken advantage of a law that encouraged her to leave the child in safe hands -- in this case, in a hospital emergency room. It was only a few years ago when other Houston-area babies weren't so fortunate, and the woman who now hopes to adopt Emily still agonizes over the memory.

"I can recall being devastated by the news of another baby found dead or in a Dumpster or in some field," said the woman, who asked to use only her first name, Trisha, to avoid unwanted publicity. "I would have easily taken any one of those children."

In 1999, Texas passed the nation's first Baby Moses Law, offering parents immunity from prosecution if they leave their newborns in hospitals or fire stations with medical technicians. The law took effect in September of that year. But while 10 Houston-area babies have been abandoned in safe places since the law was enacted, at least 12 others haven't been, and three of them died. The problem, officials say, is that too many desperate mothers still don't know about the law. What's more, some officials fear that the policy of Child Protective Services to look for the mother after she's legally abandoned the baby could be keeping people from using the law. CPS officials say they are obligated to look for the parents because judges here require due diligence in trying to find them before severing their parental rights. But others, including state Rep. Geanie Morrison, the law's author, say the mothers want anonymity, or they would have found another alternative.

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, honorary chair of the Baby Moses Foundation in Texas, said that in the next legislative session, he plans to secure funding to publicize the law and seek additional support in communities to help get out the word. He knows funds are tight, he said, "but this project, in my judgment, is so important. It clearly saves lives." Dewhurst also said he would like to tighten the law to protect the anonymity of parents who use it. "I think CPS is good-hearted, and they simply are trying to follow what they believe is the law," said Dewhurst. "But if we have to tweak the law in the next session, we will."

http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/metropolitan/2650338

[SheilaT]

1. The sad thing is

that some people object to these laws because they somehow think it will only encourage women to abandon their babies, and of course women must be punished for having sex by getting pregnant and giving birth and raising the child. But of course, we can't waste a penny of our precious tax dollars on sex-ed or welfare, can we?