LANCASTER – A newborn girl was turned over at a hospital in Lancaster on Monday (Sept. 30) under the Safe Surrender program, county officials announced.
As is standard practice, the newborn is now in protective custody and she will be placed with a family approved for adoption by the Department of Children and Family Services.
“Last week, we launched a new Safe Surrender outreach campaign with a message to desperate mothers that ‘there is a better choice,’” said Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe, who started the Safe Surrender program in 2001. “This mother made the better choice by safely surrendering her baby at a hospital, and now her child has a chance to be part of a loving family.”
“As word continues to spread about the Program, other moms in similar situations can make the right choice for their babies and themselves, because of Safe Surrender,” Knabe continued.
The Lancaster newborn marks the seventh Safe Surrender in Los Angeles County, this year alone, and the 110th since the program began more than 12 years ago.
The Safe Surrender program allows someone to confidentially hand over an infant that is no more than three days old, as long as the infant shows no signs of abuse.
The new Safe Surrender campaign expands the program’s outreach to communities across Los Angeles County by launching in multiple languages and relying on a mix of traditional and grassroots awareness efforts. The campaign includes billboards, posters, bumper stickers, brochures and a redesigned website.
To learn more about the Safe Surrender Program, visit BabySafeLA.org.
LoveHopeUnderstanding says
This girl may have known that NO adoption would be handled without notifying the whole freakin world.
Perhaps she wanted the birth of this baby to be something that she could put behind her for any number of reasons. She found herself pregnant and knew she couldn’t raise a child. Maybe she wanted a future for herself, where she would be married and have a family and not feel shamed (sadly) about have a baby out of wedlock. Maybe reasons like college, breakup, unplanned, lifestyle, raped, involved in domestic abuse. All good reasons.
The way the adoption process is, no girl/woman can give her baby up without future ramifications. Even girls who were PROMISED anonymity, were betrayed by most states.
She chose not to have an abortion, or dump her live baby in a garbage can somewhere. She chose not to leave her baby with family and she must have reasons why.
This baby will truly be a gift to some couple and come with no baggage. There will not be any records to unseal. If the child reaches out to media when she is grown, and the mom decides she is strong enough to come forward, she will.
I know this is a sensitive subject to most everyone and everyone will have strong opinions. I think she did a wonderful selfless thing that she will be tormented for in her sleep for a long time. Regardless of selfish or selfless, this baby will have the opportunity to thrive.
tinksmom says
God bless that mom! Had to be the hardest choice she ever made and one out of pure love!
MUNECA818 says
To the lady that left her baby!
Thank you for leaving the baby in good hands,Thank you for not dumping the baby in a trash bag or dumpsters lake other woman have done, your baby will be in good hands and will find a great family. It will be hard for you having to make that decision, times are hard right now and god only knows what your situation and your feelings about this. It will be hard coping with this decision but if you need counseling about how to get over this there is a lot of sowers out there that are free of charge,i wish you luck in your life and hopefully this is the last time you do this and be more careful.
ps. wish you the best in life,and thank you for choosing the right path for your baby,only a mother could choose the right future for there child, and her future was this. :)
Octobersecond says
Thank you for posting a comment that was warm and understanding. It sounds like you “get it”. No telling what the future holds for the mother of this baby and it may be, she knows something we do not know. I hope she is not alone during this time of sacrifice and what must be pain.
fed up in Lancaster says
To the mom.. I am happy you made this decision instead of being careless like some other new moms. You must have a really goid heart. I am sure this was hard. Your baby is safe in the hospital. Good job, I am proud of you. I hope more new mothers of unwanted babies follow in your footsteps!
looneytunes says
Time limit needs to be extended to longer than 3 days. Some girls try to be the mom their baby needs and a month later they realize, they can’t be a mother. Time limit should be extended to 2 yr old.
J says
Sounds like the program is more geared towards an alternative to abortion, not a “free trial baby”
looneytunes says
Sure, in a perfect world, no one would have unplanned or unwanted babies. In the meantime, reality is there are plenty of unplanned and unwanted babies being pushed around in umbrella strollers, shopping carts, dropped off at relatives or left home alone. Sad truth, many of those babies end up in adoption or foster care with mom in jail and her parental rights taken away after years of some social worker trying to reunite the babies with parents who aren’t grown themselves. This program is there for a reason and if it saves 1 child, then it’s a worthwhile program. Better yet it doesn’t cost you (J) a dime.
An alternative to abortion? great
fed up in Lancaster says
I don’t think this program was designed to be a, alternative to abortion. I believe it was focused more on a alternative not to throw your baby in the trash. To give young ladies a chance to do the right thing. Abortion is no illeagal. And besides that if a woman can have a abortion up until the ninth month, maybe we should give them 9 months to safely turn there baby in, no questions asked!
AVGirl says
Abortion up to the 9th month? Late term abortions are not allowed in CA unless it is medically necessary (if it endangers the life of the mother)
“California’s post-viability restriction states that an abortion may be provided after viability only if in the good-faith medical judgment of the physician, the continuation of the pregnancy poses a risk to the woman’s life or health. Cal. Health & Safety Code § 123464 (Enacted 2002; Last Amended 2003); Cal. Health & Safety Code §§123466-123468 (Enacted 2002).”
Age of viability I believe is 28 weeks, though babies born before that have survived.
Heather says
I believe the deadline for abortion is 24 weeks…which is 6 months. I am not going into politics…but 6 months is a very long time. That is 2/3 of the pregnancy. Ive always thought the deadline was 16 weeks/4 months. I couldn’t imagine being 6 months pregnant and then deciding to get an abortion. If you’re gonna go that far in the pregnancy…you mine as well choose adoption.
Laura says
Yes I agree three days is not enough. It should really be anytime during infancy.
Toni Cosgrove says
Totally agree..its a hard decision to make and should be made when not so aught up in hormone unbalance…so many families would benefit from these babies being given up for adoption…..it might also lessen babies being abused or neglected because Mom isnt ready or has no support. Give the girls and these babies a chance..at least up to a year. It wont hurt anyone, and may save many.
MUNECA818 says
I do agree that time limit should at least be 1 month, at least but 3 days its not enough.
fostermommy says
Hi!!! I am TOTALLY just throwing this out there, cause I have been involved with the foster system for 22 years ;) We have actually gotten a little girl one time who was safely surrendered to a fire department and she was 17months old ;) The mom has a certain amount of days to change her mind, and then sometimes it opens a case with DCFS (which is what happened in this case) So, I dont think that they ever turn someone away for surrendering their baby no matter the age ;) But no matter what, a mom who realizes that she is not capable of taking care of her child, so she seeks help, even to the point of giving that child into adoption, in my book makes that mom a hero. She had the “guts” enough to realize what was best for the CHILD and not herself or her pride and let the child go!!!!! ;)
looneytunes says
Good to hear the time limit is longer. I had always thought it was more like 18 yrs old and that some states had lowered the age because moms were dropping off their teens when they started to misbehave.
sikntired says
Sad, but glad she did the right thing.