TAMPA, FL – Tampa Police Department officers made a troubling discovery on the University of Tampa’s campus last Wednesday, April 28. They found a newborn baby girl, already deceased, wrapped in a towel and placed in a garbage bin. The authorities responded to the scene around 7 p.m. that day, further revealing in a press statement on Monday that the infant’s body was moved to a medical examiner’s office for post-mortem examination.
Additional police investigation led to the discovery of the mother, who was subsequently transported to a nearby hospital. Her identity and current medical status have not been publicly shared. Officials have yet to release information regarding any charges being filed in this case.
Tampa law enforcement has referred to the deceased as a ‘newborn.’ Florida law denotes a newborn as an infant within the first week of life. The age and other details about the baby remain unknown.
Longstanding Florida legislation, known as the Safe Haven Law, allows parents to surrender their newborns at hospitals, fire stations, and EMS stations without facing legal repercussions, as long as the infant is unharmed.
According to the National Safe Haven Alliance, 2021 alone has seen 29 infants’ lives saved nationwide, due to the opportunity provided by Safe Haven laws. The group reports that since the law’s implementation in 1999, 4,783 infants have been spared potentially life-threatening situations thanks to this legislation.
Earlier in 2021, the Florida House of Representatives expanded Safe Haven protections, extending the period for parents to surrender infants from one week to 30 days after birth. This amendment is set to go into effect on July 1, 2021.