The State - News from July 25, 1988

A newborn baby died after being dropped by a teen-age mother into the waste tank of an outdoor toilet in a Sierra Nevada campground. The 16-year-old mother, whose name was not released, told Placer County sheriff’s deputies she accidentally dropped the baby into the 1,000-gallon tank of waste material as she was giving birth in the campground toilet. The girl, described as “large,” said she had concealed her pregnancy from other family members on an outing in the Tahoe National Forest. The girl told deputies that while she was giving birth, the infant slipped from her hands and through the toilet opening into the waste tank. She reported she tried, but failed, to retrieve the baby. Investigators will submit their findings to the district attorney, who will determine possible charges.