Woman Identifies Abandoned Boy : Search: Grandmother who left the child at National City day-care center is still being sought.

A 2-year-old boy abandoned last week has been identified, but authorities are still looking for his grandmother, who left him at a National City day-care center.

A county Department of Social Services employee in Chula Vista called National City Police on Friday morning after recognizing the boy, named David Eric Wilson, in a television news broadcast Thursday night, Police Detective Timothy Drum said.

The boy and his grandmother, Judith Lynn Carr, 39--who also uses the name Judith Holiday--had been clients on public assistance at the Social Services Department’s Chula Vista office for about a month, Drum said.

Authorities made a public plea for help Thursday after a week of fruitless efforts to identify the boy, who was dropped off at the ABC Child’s World Pre-School & Kindergarten on July 2 by a woman who didn’t give her name and never returned. The woman identified herself only as the boy’s grandmother and said his name was Eric Wilson.

“We are requesting that she come forward and call the Child Abuse Hotline at 560-2191 in an attempt to reunite herself with Eric,” Drum said.

Eric, a happy, outgoing child with blond hair and blue eyes, remains in foster care.

Baenziger said Social Services staff did not issue a bulletin about the abandoned boy to its social workers and employees earlier because they were concerned that in doing so they would violate confidentiality laws on children placed in their custody. The agency received court approval to go public late Wednesday, Baenziger said, and decided to make an announcement seeking help in identifying the boy through the news media the next morning.

After seeing Eric’s picture, the social worker assigned to his case remembered him and his grandmother coming into the Chula Vista social services office on July 2 requesting more money. The social worker, who asked that her name not be made public, told Carr she did not meet the service’s guidelines and could not receive more money.

“I assume she was going to be evicted from the motel where she was staying, and that is probably why she left him at the day-care center,” Drum said.

Carr had been staying at the Avon Motel at 99 Broadway in Chula Vista. Clerks at the motel said they did not know Carr. She had worked at the Westward Ho Casino in Las Vegas before coming here and signing up for financial assistance at the Social Services office, Drum said. The detective said he did not know how long the boy had been in his grandmother’s custody.

Eric’s mother is Amanda Braxton, who may also be from Las Vegas. Drum said he has asked social services authorities in that city for help in locating Braxton but had yet to hear back from them Friday evening.

Drum said he does not know the name of the boy’s father.

Television footage and newspaper photos of Eric smiling and giggling brought an outpouring of concern from the public.

“I’ve gotten approximately 35 phone messages regarding this, and they’re still coming in,” Drum said.

Carol Baenziger, a Social Services spokeswoman, said the department also received many calls from people wanting to adopt Eric or purchase clothes and toys for him.

“I can’t believe the kind of response cases like this bring from the public,” Drum said. “The outpouring of concern has been just amazing.”