A Chicago woman abandoned a 3-year-old boy; whom she claimed was not her own child. She then told fire fighters that she had to catch a plane to Virginia for military service, according to an article in the Chicago Tribune.
She told the fire fighters that the toddler was her nephew, and that the boy's mother neglected to pick him up after dropping him off three days prior. She said she had to follow deployment orders and could no longer care for him, according to Police News Affairs Officer Laura Kubiak, who was interviewed for the story.
The unidentified woman may have believed she was acting lawfully in accordance with the state's Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act, more commonly referred to as the "safe haven" law. However, that may not be the case.
According to the text of the Act, the child was too old to qualify as a newborn infant. Safe haven laws were established primarily to protect newborns from infanticide or unsafe abandonment by parents who choose not to care for them; as a kind of amnesty for parents in desperate situations, according to the Child Welfare Information Gateway.
Safe haven laws differ by state and some do not expressly state age limits, including Nebraska. In that state, many children over the age of 10 were dropped off at designated safe havens (i.e. firehouses, medical facilities). But Illinois law specifically states that the child must be 30 days old or younger:
"Newborn infant" means a child who a licensed physician reasonably believes is 30 days old or less at the time the child is initially relinquished.
So did the woman who says she had to get on a plane for military service have any other options? What about the child's mother? You'll have to ask an Illinois family lawyer.
Related Resources:
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The Adoptability of Abandoned Babies (FindLaw)
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Nebraska Lawmakers Re-Examine Child "Safe Haven" Law (FindLaw's Common Law Blog)
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Illinois Safe Haven Law: FAQ (Save Abandoned Babies Foundation)
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