After authorities in Leesburg announced they are investigating the death of a late-term baby found dead in a pond, Oliva Turner of the Virginia Society for Human Life says the death demonstrates why the public needs to know about safe haven laws.
“A safe haven law,” Turner explains, “allows a mother in a desperate situation to relinquish her baby, without any fear of legal action, at a hospital or a fire station.”
In Virginia, that can be done within 30 days after birth.
All 50 states have safe haven laws that allow giving up a baby anonymously with no fear of prosecution but such laws receive little to no publicity until a baby is found abandoned or dead.
“As tragic as the situation was in Leesburg, it is good that we are able to communicate to the public that there is help available,” Turner says. “And no woman, no mother, no parent ever needs to feel that desperate without knowing that there is another avenue they can take up.”
AFN has reported numerous times that many states offer Safe Haven Baby Boxes.
After story was posted, it was edited to clarify that Virginia currently has no Safe Haven Baby Boxes -- although some lawmakers are working toward that end.
