Safe haven laws in the US allow parents to leave unharmed babies or young children in places like police stations or hospitals without being prosecuted for child neglect. These laws were established due to the tragic upsurge in infant abandonment and infanticide, and states that have enacted these laws see a reduction in cases of infanticide and abandonment. However, safe haven laws cannot replace the need for proper education before pregnancy occurs or goes into labor without medical attention.
Safe haven laws, sometimes called the BaMoses laws, are laws within some US states that allow new mothers or sometimes fathers to leave unharmed babies or young children in places like police stations or hospitals. When safe haven laws are in effect in a U.S. state, which includes nearly all of them, parents will not be prosecuted for child neglect and in many states, parents may not even need to leave their name or personal information when leaving a child.
These laws were established due to the tragic upsurge in infant abandonment and even infanticide. A new mother who is terrified of having her motherhood exposed or who is overwhelmed by motherhood may act in ways that endanger her child. This may include throwing children away, leaving them abandoned in places where they are unlikely to be discovered, or killing them before disposing of them. The severity of infanticide or abandonment can reach these mothers and can not only end the life of a newborn, but it can also end the future of a mother who is not fully equipped or ready to care for a child.
The laws within each state differ and the crucial thing about each state offering these laws is that information about them must be easily accessible. Safe haven laws will only work if a new mom knows they exist and knows exactly what to do if motherhood is unexpected or overwhelming. States that have enacted these laws see a reduction in cases of infanticide and abandonment and many children conveniently left in a safe place are successfully adopted. In some states, mothers may look back and have their babies back during a certain period of time, at which point social services may be able to help the mother with support and education.
The age of the child who can be left in a safe place can vary by state. Some states allow mothers to leave babies up to one month of age. Others will not accept babies in safe haven status if they are more than three days old. Not only are parents given immunity from neglect charges, but people who act as safe-haven providers are also generally given immunity from any potential harm that may come to the child. Most children placed in the care of a safe-haven provider are taken to hospital and can receive medical treatment and tests without parental permission.
Some loopholes in state haven laws have led to unintended consequences. In the late 2000s, when Nebraska passed state shelter laws, they failed to specify the ages of children, leading some parents to leave all their children or teenagers in safe places. Safe haven laws need to be carefully written to prevent this and are primarily aimed at mothers who have babies out of hospital and who have no support whatsoever.
Safe haven laws can prevent infant deaths and prosecute mothers, but they aren’t completely effective. In the states where these laws have been passed, there are still cases of infanticide and child abandonment. For this reason, they cannot replace young women and men’s critical need for proper education before pregnancy occurs or goes into labor without medical attention. Safe haven laws are usually a last resort and intervention to protect both mothers and their newborns and should not be seen as a total solution to the problem of child abandonment, unwanted pregnancy and infanticide.
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