Infant Left to Die in Toilet, Law Debated
Jan. 24, 2003 -- It seems that not even Wisconsin's child safe haven law could protect one high school senior and the son he allegedly didn't want.
Today, Gabriel Estrada, 18, will appear in Kenosha County court to face attempted first-degree intentional homicide charges for allegedly leaving his newborn son to die in a portable park toilet hours after the baby's birth on Jan. 13.
Neither Estrada's parents nor his girlfriend's parents knew about the pregnancy. Prosecutors say that after his girlfriend gave birth, Estrada opted not to follow her wish that he drop the infant off at a church or at a police station.
Instead, authorities say, Estrada — who allegedly admitted he did not want the baby — abandoned his son, realizing the tiny boy would likely die in below-freezing temperatures.
Park custodians who heard sounds coming from the toilet saved the boy and notified police, who tracked down Estrada and the mother from an anonymous tip.
Estrada's legal troubles might have been avoided if he and his girlfriend had known fully about Wisconsin's safe haven, or discarded infant, law, which the state enacted in 2001. Under that law, they could have anonymously left their son at a police or fire station or at the hospital within 72 hours of his birth and been immune from prosecution.
Wisconsin is one of 46 states that have adopted child safe haven laws. The laws vary from state to state but their intent is to prevent the deaths of unwanted newborns. However, critics question their effectiveness: babies are still being found in trash bins, landfills and portable toilets. According to the Justice Department, between 300 and 400 dead discarded newborns are found every year.
In addition, opponents say safe haven laws send the wrong message — that it is acceptable for parents to abandon their children, to not plan the best future for even unwanted infants, and to not consider the long-term future of both the child and the abandoning parents.
"We're concerned about the message it sends to parents, that it is OK not to plan for their baby," said Wendy Wright, senior policy director for Concerned Women for America. "By planning I mean adoption, which at least leaves the mother with a sense of security and peace of mind that the baby is being placed in a loving home. When a baby is left at a police station or a hospital, the child becomes part of the black hole known as the child-welfare system."
