Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe is proud to announce that the County’s Safe Surrender Program celebrated success for the ninth time this year with the report of a safely surrendered newborn baby boy. This most recent Safe Surrender occurred earlier today, August 11, at a hospital in Los Angeles.
As is standard practice, the newborn is in protective custody and will be placed with families approved for adoption by the Department of Children and Family Services.
“A week after a newborn baby boy was found abandoned in a stroller on a street in south Los Angeles, and one day after another baby was abandoned in Santa Clarita, I am thrilled to hear that a mother made the better choice and safely surrendered her baby boy,” said Supervisor Knabe. “The recent abandonments of two newborns in Los Angeles County were near tragedies, but they were also opportunities for us to remind mothers, who may find themselves alone and in a desperate situation, that there are options to hand-over their baby safely and anonymously—No shame. No blame. No names. Thank you to our partners in the media for reminding the public about the Safe Surrender program.”
This is the ninth Safe Surrender in Los Angeles County in 2015, and the 133rd since the program began nearly 14 years ago. The program was initiated by Supervisor Knabe and approved unanimously by the Board of Supervisors in 2001. It allows someone to surrender an infant that is no more than three days old, as long as the infant shows no signs of abuse.
To learn more about the Safe Surrender Program, visit BabySafeLA.org.