An Idaho teenager has been arrested for more than a month after a dead baby was found in a Safe Haven Baby Box at Grove Creek Medical Center in Blackfoot, police said.
The newborn baby girl was removed from the box at the medical center “within a minute” after the medical team responded to the alarm informing them that the baby had been placed there on October 13. But it was found that the newborn child had died. long before she was placed in the baby box, according to a press release from Safe Haven Baby Boxes issued last month.
“The Safe Haven Baby Box is designed to provide security and anonymity to allow foster parents to surrender a newborn under 30 days of age without charge, as long as the child is unharmed,” the Blackfoot Police Department said in a news release Friday. “Unfortunately, placement of an injured or dead infant is not protected under this program or Idaho law.”
Following an investigation, 18-year-old Angel N. Newberry of Twin Falls was arrested Thursday for failing to report a death to law enforcement and the coroner, according to online records. The juvenile was booked into the Bingham County Jail.
“Due to the complexity of the investigation and the possibility of additional charges, we have information that we can provide,” said the police.
NBC News reached out to the Public Defender’s office for comment.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com