Sep 10, 2008 10:32 am US/Eastern
Att. Murder Charge Expected In Abandoned Baby Case
19-Year Allegedly Abandoned Her Newborn Baby Girl In North Bay Village
Baby Found Under A Plant With A Leaf Lodged In Her Throat
NORTH BAY VILLAGE (CBS4) ―
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Diego Aguilar Godinez, father of 19-year old woman, faces felony charges.
CBS
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Juan Ramirez also faces felony charges in the case of the abandoned baby in North Bay Village.
CBS
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Pedro Perez also faces felony charges in the case of the abandoned baby in North Bay Village.
CBS
A newborn baby remains in serious condition after being found in the middle of the night by police, allegedly abandoned by its mother right after she gave birth in North Bay Village, according to police.
North Bay Village Police were called to 7917 West Drive around 11:30 Monday night to investigate a report of a woman bleeding profusely. The woman, identified as 19-year old Lorena Godinez-Perez, was taken to Jackson Memorial Hospital where doctors determined she had recently given birth, although she denied it.
Officers went back to the scene to try and find the newborn infant. After an exhaustive search, officers found the baby girl beneath a plant next to a fence on the same property where the mother was found several hours earlier. The baby's umbilical cord and placenta were still attached.
"She was just laying their motionless. At first they thought she was dead and if she's dead, then it was a crime scene but then they saw an arm move," said Det. John Costa from the North Bay Village Police Dept.
One of the responding officers quickly jumped into action. "Officer Register, the only thing he had to pick her up with was his uniform shirt and he wrapped her up in his shirt and we transported her to the rescue station," explained Det. Costa.
From the rescue station, she was transported to Jackson Memorial Hospital were doctors discovered she had a large leaf lodged in her throat. The leaf was removed and the baby girl is listed in serious condition. She will likely be turned over to the state for care.
Godinez-Perez, a 19-year old immigrant from Guatemala, is listed in stable condition and is in police custody at JMH, according to investigators. She will be charged with attempted murder.
What this young woman may not have known is that she could have avoided possible charges under Florida's Safe Haven Law.
The law states a parent may anonymously leave a newborn infant approximately 3 days old or younger with a medical technician, firefighter or paramedic at any emergency room, fire station or emergency medical services station open 24 hours a day, without fear of prosecution for abandonment.
Click here for a Fast Facts on Florida's Safe Haven Law.
The girls' father, Diego Aguilar Godinez, and his two roommates, Pedro Martin Perez and Juan Martinez Ramirez, are also facing felony charges because police say they did nothing to stop the crime or help the baby. But all three men say they didn't know the young woman was pregnant.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Double Homicide In NW Miami-Dade
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