NY mom charged with abandoning hours-old baby in apartment building hallway cut loose over bail reform laws
A 21-year-old mother has been arrested for allegedly ditching her newborn baby daughter in a Yonkers apartment building hallway — only to be cut loose because of New York’s bail reform laws, police said.
Jaqueline Perez, of Yonkers, was charged Thursday with one count of abandonment of a child.
The Yonkers Police Department pointed out in a statement that “due to laws restricting bail,” the felony charge against the mom was ineligible for bail.
Perez was arraigned in Yonkers Criminal Court and released on her own recognizance, according to the police.
Perez’s baby was discovered by neighbors on the first floor of an apartment building on Chestnut Street Tuesday evening.
The hours-old infant had been wrapped in a blanket and was left alone on the cold floor near the entryway.
Her umbilical cord was still attached, with a black string wrapped around it, according to the cops.
After interviewing witnesses and reviewing hours of surveillance footage, detectives were able to identify and track down the new mom.
They were said to have determined that Perez had given birth to her daughter on her own around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday. She then dressed the baby in a t-shirt, wrapped her in a blanket and left her in the hallway around 7:30 p.m.
About an hour later, a neighbor found the abandoned baby and called the police.
The girl was taken to a hospital, where police said she was listed in stable condition as of Thursday. She remained in the custody of Child Protective Service.
Perez was also hospitalized “due to her unconventional childbirth,” the press released stated. She was assessed by medics and later released.
“The circumstances that occurred are heartbreaking and unfortunate, but we are thankful the baby is stable and safe,” said Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano. “I commend the compassionate and swift actions of our Yonkers PD in finding the mother, exhibiting concern for her welfare after going through a traumatic and desperate ordeal.”
Police Commissioner Christopher Sapienza reminded the public that under New York’s “Safe Haven” laws, parents can legally surrender babies under 30 days old at any of Yonkers’ police precincts, fire stations or hospitals without facing prosecution.
“We hope that this incident sheds light on the proper procedures to follow to avoid what could have been a horrible tragedy,” Sapienza said.
