signs of the times?!

This is an actual warning label affixed to the dumpsters at Huntington Beach Memorial Hospital
see a list of safe surrender laws by state here!
My Grandmother use to tell me stories of families abandoning their children during the Great Depression. She told me of one family that stopped at the local gas station/general store and sent their 5 children in with enough money to buy themselves some cokes from the soda fountain and just drove off after the children were inside. She told me how this was what some parents thought was their only option. They truly believed they were doing the best for their children.
I remember thinking how horrible that was and how I doubted any parent could believe leaving their child in a strange place, counting, literally, on the kindness of strangers to care for it, was a good thing?
But apparently some did. She said it was frighteningly common to hear of it happening especially during the worst years of the Great Depression.
I am starting to wonder if we are going to see that trend again as our country again slips into another economic depression. There have been news stories about the increase of abandoned pets due to economic stress all over the country. People are having to choose between feeding themselves and their families or feeding their beloved family pet. Many are having to give their pets up knowing they face possible euthanasia because they just can't afford to keep them anymore. I know what you are going to say, "But those are just animals! They aren't actual children!"
Have you ever looked at what (prior to the current recession) Americans spend annually on their pets?
According to Business Week; "Americans now spend $41 billion a year on their pets—more than the gross domestic product of all but 64 countries in the world. That's double the amount shelled out on pets a decade ago, with annual spending expected to hit $52 billion in the next two years, according to Packaged Facts, a consumer research company based in Rockville, Md. That puts the yearly cost of buying, feeding, and caring for pets in excess of what Americans spend on the movies ($10.8 billion), playing video games ($11.6 billion), and listening to recorded music ($10.6 billion) combined."
Most of us consider our pets to be full-fledged members of the family, according to a 2005 Pew Social Trends Report of more than 3,000 representative Americans. Fully 85 percent considered their dogs to be family members, as did 78 percent of those who owned cats.
“When you ask adults about their parents, 87 percent say they feel close to their mom and 74 percent say they feel close to their dads,” found the Pew survey. “But the family intimacy rankings look like this: dog 94 percent, mom 87 percent, cat 84 percent, dad, 74 percent.”
So if Fido is getting the boot, is little Billy next?
It depends, how little is little Billy and if he is under 72 hours old, he might fall under his states Safe Surrender law. I'm not saying that is good or bad but I have to wonder if these laws had been in effect during the Great Depression, would there have been more children and infants abandoned or would more children and infants been saved from neglect and abuse because of it?
We may never know, but if what happened in Nebraska when their safe surrender law didn't set any age limits is any indication, we might be seeing little Billy at the local 7-11 holding his coke and wondering when his parents are coming back.

The Safely Surrendered Baby Law (also known as the Safe Haven Law) allows a parent or person with lawful custody to surrender a baby confidentially to a designated Safe Surrender Site, without fear of arrest or prosecution for child abandonment.

Clarifying Legal and Procedural Issues in the Safely Surrendered Baby Law.

New laws in 50 States went into effect. Known as the “Safely Surrendered Baby Law,” the law states that “no parent or other person who has lawful custody of a minor child 72 hours old or younger may be prosecuted for child abandonment if he or she voluntarily surrenders physical custody of the child to an employee at a public or private emergency room.”

Newborns may also be safely surrendered at City and County Fire Department stations and other fire stations designated by the County Board of Supervisors and City Councils.

The following are common questions and answers regarding the legal provisions and procedures included in the Law:

What is the Safely Surrendered Baby Law?

Safely Surrendered Baby Law allows parents to confidentially give up their baby, 72 hours or younger. As long as the baby has not been abused or neglected, parents may give up their newborn without fear of arrest or prosecution.

The law guarantees confidentiality to the surrendering adult. What does this mean?

A parent who safely surrenders a baby does not have to give her name. If a parent chooses to give her name or other identifying information, only individuals who need to know the identity and whereabouts of a surrendering parent will have access to such information, thus guaranteeing confidentiality. Such individuals may include the judge and the attorneys in court who ensure that the baby is safe and placed in a pre-adoptive home.

Who does the law allow to bring the baby to a Safe Surrender site?

The law allows the parent or other person with lawful custody to bring the baby to a Safe Surrender Site.

Does the law allow a parent to leave his or her newborn at the entrance of a Safe Surrender site?

NO. To ensure the safety of the newborn, the parent or person with lawful custody must give his or her baby to an employee of the Safe Surrender site.

Does the parent have to tell anything to the person taking the baby at the Safe Surrender site?

NO. However, the parent will be asked to fill out a questionnaire designed to gather important medical history information, which is very useful in caring for the baby. Although filling out the questionnaire is not required, it is encouraged. If she wishes, the parent can take the questionnaire home and mail it back to the hospital once it has been completed. The medical questionnaire does not require any information that would compromise the confidentiality of the parent.

What is the process for a parent to reclaim his or her child within the XX-day time frame outlined in the Safe Surrender Law?

Within XX days from the date a parent surrenders a baby, the parent should call the County Department of Children and Family Services and this could include a Child Protection Hotline. Each State has different information and names of agencies including the amount of days allowed. We will try to list on this site those laws for each state and the amount of days. A social worker will meet with the parent and assess his or her home to determine whether the baby can be safely returned to the parent.

What happens if a parent wants to reclaim his or her child after the XX-day time frame?

A parent should call the County Department of Children and Family Services or Child Protection Hotline. Because the baby’s case will be in court, the parent may have to attend court hearings in addition to meeting with social workers and having his or her home assessed.

What is the purpose of the identification bracelet that is placed on the infant and provided to the surrendering adult at the Safe Surrender site?

The bracelet assists the social workers in determining who a baby’s parents may be in those cases where a parent requests the baby back. The bracelet does not establish parentage or right to custody of the child.

What happens to the baby if a parent does not attempt to reclaim his or her child?

Upon receiving the surrendered baby, social workers immediately place the baby in a safe and loving home and begin the adoption process.

How many babies have been safely surrendered in Los Angeles County? (as of September 9, 2008)
Year Safe Surrenders, Abandonments
1999 - 0, 6 (6 of whom died)
2000 - 0, 3 (3 of whom died)
2001 - 0, 14 (11 of whom died)
2002 - 10, 13 (8 of whom died)
2003 - 8, 8 (7 of whom died)
2004 - 10, 8 (7 of whom died)
2005 - 8, 4 (4 of whom died)
2006 - 11, 7 (5 of whom died)
2007 - 15, 3 (3 of whom died)
2008 - 7, 7 (2 of whom died)
The first photo is of California's version of a foundling wheel or baby hatch. If within 72 hours of giving birth you show up at a Safe Surrender Site with your infant at any time of day or night, you can turn over custody without fear of being arrested or prosecuted for child abandonment. The only requirement is that you must physically hand over the child to a person who answers at the door. This is due to California's Safely Surrendered Baby Law.

Most states have similar rules. The slogan: "no shame, no blame, no names • sin pena, sin culpa, sin peligro."
Our CA law has had its ups and downs over the years. This might give you some idea of how some people would like to increase the age of a newborn that could be given up.
It's easy to see how the program is working in Los Angeles County.
READ MORE about California's law here!

What happened when one state didn't "define" child in it's abandonment laws!?!
Nebraska never wanted the attention that came with the heart-wrenching reports of desperate parents leaving sobbing children at hospitals, including little ones and unruly teenagers, under the state's new safe-haven law. "We were being ridiculed every day," says state senator Dianna Schimek of Lincoln, "but I have no apologies because something good will come of this. We uncovered something that we need to address. And it's not just Nebraska — it's widespread."

The Nebraska legislature's judiciary committee met in a special session on Monday to begin rewriting the law, which has resulted in an epidemic of abandoned children — with some parents driving from Florida, Arizona and Georgia to drop off their problem kids. Most states allow a parent to leave an infant at a fire station or hospital without fear of prosecution, but because Nebraska's law did not define child, 34 kids have been dropped off at Omaha hospitals since September. None were infants. The rest of America was stunned. But, as the special session proceeded, some legislators defended the intent of the law.

While Governor Dave Heineman is pushing to limit the rewritten law to newborns of 72 hours, some lawmakers are saying that the abandonments have exposed an urgent need to fix gaping holes in the state's mental-health services, which they claim fail to assist families with little resources to help problem children. Senator Annette Dubas introduced an alternate bill that would retain a safe haven for parents with kids ages 1 to 15 through June 2009 so that the legislature could address the broader issues come January. "Do not forget those struggling families," she urged her colleagues.

Some lawmakers were angered by what they see as a callous response from Heineman's administration — that state welfare agents appear to be accusing parents of too easily abdicating their responsibilities. "It's been very disturbing, how judgmental you've been," Senator Amanda McGill said to the state's health and human services chief, Todd Landry. "You've had plenty of time to make these judgmental statements to the press" but not to return phone calls from desperate parents, she said. Landry argued that the state offers many lifelines and that services are available. "So all a parent has to do is call a hotline?" Senator Steve Lathrop asked skeptically. "What is the harm," he asked repeatedly, of allowing distraught parents to bring older kids in?

But the voices that appear to have won the day were those of the abandoned. "I'll be good — I'll be good, I promise," one child begged as the mother walked away, Ann Schaumacher of Immanuel Medical Center in Omaha told the judiciary committee. "It is not the right place for relinquishment to occur," she said of the ER abandonments. Some hardened adolescents show no emotion at all, she recalled, citing an older teen who was left by a mother who simply said, "I can't do it anymore." Said Schaumacher: "These children will never be the same, and that's the tragedy of this law." Schaumacher, like most hospital representatives, argues that the law should be limited to newborns and infants.

Near the end of a four-hour-plus hearing, Lyman "Scott" Wostrel gave a grown man's choked testimony of the experience of abandonment. His mother gave him up at 14, he said. "It doesn't matter what a person says. The action speaks: I don't love you. Any kid can figure that out," he said. Wostrel is urging lawmakers to limit the law to newborns.

At the end of the day, the judiciary committee voted to send a measure to the floor of the unicameral legislature on Tuesday that would amend the governor's bill to extend the law to children as old as 30 days. (Some legislators wanted the limit to be a year or more.) Chairman Brad Ashford said he expected vigorous debate and further amendments. A 24-hour cooling-off period will then go into effect before a final vote comes on Friday.

Even though Governor Heineman is likely to accept a law that applies to infancy, the broader issue of childhood mental illness did have its hearing. A majority of the kids abandoned had a history of mental illness — 90% of the parents or guardians had sought state services for them before. Many had at least one parent in jail. One big hole in the safety net, said Dr. Jane Theobald, an Omaha psychiatrist and representative for the Nebraska Psychiatric Association, is that there are simply not enough facilities for troubled youngsters. A teenager who attempts suicide might stay at a general hospital for days, waiting for an opening in a mental-health facility that may or may not come. "I've sent kids out of state or four hours away for a bed," she said. "That's typical, not the exception."

Lawmakers sympathetic to the parents and guardians of older troubled children note that Omaha is, after all, home to the original Boys Town of Father Flanagan fame. In the city, there's a statue of one young boy carrying another on his back, with the words chiseled underneath, "He ain't heavy, Father, he's m' brother." During the Great Depression, parents would scrape together bus fare and hang a sign that read "Take Me to Boys Town" around their child's neck. Tysheema Brown, the Atlanta woman who drove 1,000 miles to Omaha to drop off her 12-year-old son, had been taken to Boys Town herself as a teenager. She had tried to get a spot for him in a similar Georgia institution for six months and failed. During that long drive she reportedly told her son what was happening; she reasoned later that he would not hate her because she believed she was sparing him from a jail cell.

The Rev. Steven Boes, president of Boys Town, didn't bother to attend Monday's hearing because he thinks little can be done on the big issues of mental health. He says he'll be back in Lincoln in January "to strike while the iron is hot" when legislators are scheduled to debate privatizing behavioral health services for troubled adolescents. Meanwhile, Boes had good news for Tysheema Brown. The priest said he's working with Georgia alumni to get her housing and find her son a spot, hopefully in Omaha



It's not happening only in the US!
'Baby boxes' help abandoned infants
By Mindy Kay Bricker

PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC –
Armed with a smile, a compliment, and a quip ready for anyone, Ludvik Hess is someone who probably has always looked and acted like a grandpa. And he is, both literally and figuratively, for Mr. Hess runs a charity for abandoned children and - as of this summer - a "baby box."
The term, coined by Hess, is for an incubator like device designed for mothers who want to abandon their babies safely and anonymously at a private clinic in Prague.

The mother rings the bell, deposits the baby, and closes the door, which locks immediately. The bell alerts the nurse's station and sends a page to the doctor and nurse on duty. The foundling is collected within 60 seconds and taken to a maternity hospital for care. Ultimately, the child will be put up for adoption.

Hess, who heads the Save Abandoned Babies Foundation in Prague, is not the first - and he won't be the last - to install such a baby box in Europe.

In April 2000, a similar "baby hatch" was installed in a Hamburg, Germany, hospital after five babies were found in recycling bins in 1999. Two of the infants died, according to Heidi Rosenfeld, a social worker for SterniPark, the Hamburg charity responsible for installing that first baby hatch.

So far, 21 babies have been "deposited" in Hamburg and 70 more boxes have been installed throughout Germany. Now Belgium, Austria, Slovakia, Switzerland, and Hungary have also installed the boxes.

The contraption is not a solution to the abandoned-baby problem, Ms. Rosenfeld says. "It's a last resort," she says in a telephone interview. "When the woman cannot find any other way, it's the last way to help so that the baby can live."

Besides the baby boxes, toll-free crisis numbers are also available. The goal is to encourage the mother to keep her baby, Rosenfeld says. If that fails, the woman is informed of her options before, during, and after birth.

The baby-box concept is a technologically updated answer to a very old problem. A century ago, a hospital in the center of Prague provided a basket for abandoned babies. In Antwerp, Belgium, the basket system was used in convents some 200 years ago.

"I think in this society, [the baby box] is more needed than it used to be," says Katrin Beyer, cofounder of Antwerp-based Moeders voor Moeders (Mothers for Mothers), a charitable group that installed the first and only box in Belgium.

Communities are more insular today, she says. Women who abandon their children are often alone - they haven't told family, friends, or partners of their pregnancies, so they deliver these babies themselves, without any medical supervision, Ms. Beyer says.

The boxes "should be widely accepted, and no one should think of it as an easy way out. There are easier ways than that," she adds.

Critics say the boxes encourage mothers to abandon their children and shirk the responsibility of motherhood. The Czech Health Ministry rejected the idea of the boxes, meaning that they will not appear at state-run hospitals. The ministry contended that the boxes would attract infants with disabilities or the babies of foreigners, resulting in expenses the state should not have to pay.

Hess fought with the ministry for two years before installing the box in a private clinic outside Prague's city center. By that time he had the vocal support of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs.

Critics overlook the point of the baby box, says Michaela Marksova-Tominova, head of the ministry's Department of Family Policy and Social Work. "It is only to protect these children that are killed by the mothers," Ms. Tominova says. "It can't harm anybody."

A handful of abandoned babies still perish each year in the Czech Republic. Mothers in the countryside who want to give up their babies aren't going to travel three hours to Prague, Hess says. He is determined to put more boxes in place.
read another blog about it here!