Ohio's Safe Haven law is a very good thing

Newborn dropped off at EMH is in foster care
Roberson, Lisa. Elyria Chronicle-Telegram, Feb. 7, 2008.

ELYRIA — A newborn baby girl born at home and then dropped off at EMH Regional Medical Center hours later is out of the hospital and living with a county approved, foster-to-adopt family.

“The baby’s safe, doing well,” said Patti-Jo Burtnett, Lorain County Children Services spokeswoman, declining to say more about the baby’s status.

The baby was born sometime Sunday night during the Super Bowl game and taken to the hospital by a relative who said the child’s teenage parents could not care for her. The couple, ages 18 and 19, already has a 1-year-old and 2-year-old at home.

Hospital staff received the baby and immediately contacted Children Services.

The baby is the first this year to be dropped off under Ohio’s Safe Haven law, which allows a parent — without fear of prosecution — to dropoff an unharmed newborn that is not more than 72 hours old to a medical worker at a hospital, with a peace officer at a law enforcement agency or at an emergency service organization.

Parents are not required to provide any personal information, but they are asked to voluntarily fill out a medical history questionnaire.

In this case, an aunt dropped off the infant and gave police the names of the parents.

The father is her brother, according to a police report.

The baby’s case is more complicated than a traditional Safe Haven case because it was the aunt and not the parents dropping her off. But officials have said they aren’t looking at the case as anything else, either.

Burtnett said the child will remain in foster care until such time as the Lorain County Juvenile Court determinations adoption status.

“Most of Loran County’s foster families are ready to be both foster families and adoptive parents. So when and if this infant needs to be adopted, it will.”

Since the Safe Haven law was enacted in 2001, three other infants were surrendered in Lorain County. One infant was surrendered in 2001 and another two were surrendered in 2007, according to state figures.