Woman charged with felony in infant death

The Traverse City Record Eagle published an article today about criminal action against a mother who allegedly gave birth to a baby downstate, dismembered her infant, stuffed it in a backpack, and took it to her home in Boyne City to bury the backpack in the backyard. According to law enforcement, the mother is charged with a felony count of disinterment and mutilation of a body, and a misdemeanor count of unlawful disposition of an unclaimed body. An autopsy had produced no evidence that the child was born alive.

Once again, emphasis needs to be placed on getting the word out about how women, mostly young teenagers, can safely and without any risk of criminal charges, turn over their healthy live babies to Safe Haven facilities so that an unwanted baby may be adopted. In light of recent infant deaths in Grand Traverse County, I publish details about the Safe Delivery of Newborns Act hoping that pregnant women and the people who come into contact with them--know they are pregnant--know that they are at risk, either because of emotional or social problems, to abandon their babies, likely ending in death of a healthy infant. You could be the person who not only helps a mother deal with what seems overwhelming to her, but also save the life of an innocent. Here's what you can do to help.

Review the public service announcements in this earlier post. Show them to the mother. Support her emotionally through the delivery and help her get the baby to a Safe Haven facility to release the baby.

The Record Eagle 12/31/2010 article may be read here: "Woman charged with disinterment, mutilation." Traverse City Record Eagle. Piazza, Alex. December 31, 2010

Be the one to make a difference, save not one life, but two.