Baby Left Behind 

November 19, 2023 - San Bernardino Police Department officials report that earlier this week our officers responded to a one-month-old baby who had been abandoned by its mother in a public place. The child was luckily found quickly, and our officers brought the child back to the police department until a worker from Children and Family Services could take custody of the baby. In this case, the unfortunate circumstances were that the mother was also a juvenile, felt overwhelmed and she felt that she could no longer safely care for the baby herself. The child was clean and was left with food and diapers.

In this circumstance, the baby was left behind in a public place where the child would be discovered quickly. Unfortunately, we have seen situations similar to this where the outcome was not as pleasant. We would like to take this time to remind our public that there are options so that no baby is abandoned. San Bernardino County has 211 as a public resource that can be called from any cellular or public phone. If the child is under 72 hours old there are several safe surrender locations, and San Bernardino County Children and Family Services also has several services and resources available online or in person that can assist before a situation becomes an emergency.

Source & photos: San Bernardino Police Department