Man Discovers Abandoned Newborn, Saves Grandson

The investigation into the discovery of an abandoned newborn--umbilical cord still attached, tissue shoved in his mouth--took a bizarre turn Thursday when the man who found the whimpering infant learned he is the child’s grandfather.

The man, whose name was being withheld, was stunned when investigators told him his 17-year-old daughter had given birth early Thursday and would face attempted murder charges for allegedly placing the child in a black garbage bag and dropping him out a bathroom window.

The infant was in stable condition Thursday afternoon at a local hospital, according to Santa Ana Police Sgt. Bob Clark. The baby’s mother was arrested at Saddleback High School just before noon Thursday as she attended summer school, he said.

Investigators believe the young woman quietly gave birth about 3 a.m. as eight other people slept in the family’s two-bedroom apartment. After cleaning the bathroom, she apparently dropped the baby outside the first-floor window and left him lying behind some shrubbery outside the family’s residence, Clark said.

The unsuspecting grandfather told police that he found the baby about 4 a.m. after he heard muffled cries from outside and saw an unusual shape when he peered through the window.

Outside, he found the 5-pound, 14-ounce newborn crying and struggling for breath. He saw a police patrol car passing by and ran into the street to wave the officer down. Paramedics soon arrived to rush the newborn to Coastal Communities Hospital, Clark said.

“The good part of all this is, it looks like the little boy is going to make it,” Clark said. “The baby must have been found only a short time after it was dumped, we believe, and that was the difference.”

As police canvassed neighbors in the 2500 block of South Rosewood Avenue, investigators began to suspect that the same stucco apartment complex where the newborn was found might also be the site of the child’s birth.

“We talked to people and it leads back to the same apartment,” Clark said. “The [grandfather] seemed to be totally in the dark from beginning to end. He had no idea his daughter was pregnant. And, at this point, we have no reason to think he’s not telling the truth.”

A neighbor who knows the family said most people did not know the 17-year-old student was pregnant, and it was not obvious by looking at her.

“She didn’t show, she was very thin,” said Juan Hernandez as he watched police and media file past the yellow tape marking the spot where the child was found. “It’s very sad. I guess she just did not want her parents to know. She wanted to be seen in good eyes.”

One neighbor who would not give her name said she knew the student was pregnant, but added that she never would have believed the young woman capable of abandoning her newborn.

“It is a terrible thing, too terrible,” the neighbor said.

The 17-year-old was being held without bail Thursday night at Orange County Juvenile Hall, Clark said. The infant will probably be turned over to Orange County Social Services until the police investigation is complete, officials said.

Clark said a medical examination and questioning of the suspect had confirmed that she had indeed given birth in the night, but he would not say if she admitted to dropping the child out the window. Forensic investigators found evidence in the bathroom that suggested it was the site of the birth, he said.

“We have most of the facts at this point; the big question in our mind now is why she would do this,” Clark said.