A new Illinois law that will extend the time a women has to legally abandon her newborn won’t take effect for two months, but already several mothers have tried to give up their older babies.
Since Gov. Pat Quinn signed the bill live on Fox News in August, some women have tried to drop off babies older than seven days, said Dawn Geras, founding member of the Save Abandoned Babies Foundation.
“Women in Chicago believed they could now abandon their newborns safely without any consequence after day seven,” she said. “We have had several instances where women have showed up with their babies, and we just have to hope the safe haven locations will accept the baby.”
The amended bill, which takes effect Jan. 1, will give women up to 30 days to legally abandon a baby after its birth. Rep. Elizabeth Coulson (R-Glenview), who authored the new legislation, said it will save more lives.
“This change in the legislation will permit more children to be saved from unsafe abandonment or death,” Coulson said. “There have been far too many stories of parents who, within weeks of their babies’ birth, abandon their baby in harm’s way.”
The Abandoned Newborn Protection Act, which took effect eight years ago, allows a parent of an unharmed newborn to relinquish the baby to a safe haven, defined as hospitals, staffed police stations, fire stations and medical care facilities, with no questions asked.
The Chicago Family Resource Center for Adoption has been a big supporter of the amended bill, Executive Director Richard Pearlman said.
“Some women are afraid to approach an agency, and they might otherwise abandon a child in a terrible situation if this weren’t an option,” he said. “You know the examples, putting a child in a bag and leaving them in a dumpster; some of these women feel they have nowhere to go, and this bill gives them another option.”
Illinois will join 16 other states that allow parents up to 30 days to legally abandon a newborn. Seven states allow more than 30 days, while 12 states allow three days.
The Evangelical Child and Family Agency has taken in eight abandoned babies since 2001, and David Lundberg, director of clinical services, said the extra time is essential for women who simply change their minds or become overwhelmed.
“I think, more often than not, it takes longer than seven days for a mother to determine that this just isn’t working,” he said. “I think there are more benefits than risks to extending the time period to 30 days; in the long-run we will save more children.”
Eric Miller, chief of staff for Rep. Coulson, acknowledged it’s sometimes difficult to determine the exact age of a newborn, but he and others say it’s important to give parents extra time to make the best decision for their child.
“The extra time allows the parents to think about the life-altering decision they are about to make,” said Geras. “Way too often we hear of 2-weeks-old, or month-old babies that, because there is no alternative, are hurt or killed; this law provides another option to save a child.”
Since 2001, 53 babies have legally been turned over to a safe haven in Chicago. Over that same period, 57 babies were illegally abandoned, with 27 of them dying. That is a serious problem, Geras said.