A Florida mother arrested for trying to sell her baby. Jessica Woods,33, was spotted loitering at a Palatka store with her 18-month-old daughter on March 5.
The police release says, “An anonymous citizen made contact with Woods and asked if she and the child needed any assistance.” Woods told the employee that she didn’t need anything but instead offered to sell the baby for $500.
Police showed up and arrested Woods.
The child was taken into custody by the Department of Children and Families, and is now in foster care.
The Florida Safe Haven Law was enacted in 2000 to prevent the abandonment of newborns. The Safe Haven Law is a safety net that allows parents to leave their unharmed newborns, not more than a week old, at any Safe Haven facility recognized by state law, anonymously and without fear of prosecution.
Any hospital, emergency medical service station, or fire station staffed with full-time emergency medical service technicians, paramedics, or firefighters may accept custody of a newborn infant surrendered by its parents. By the Safe Haven laws, any newborn infant left at one of these full-time staffed facilities shall not be deemed abandoned or subject to reporting and investigation requirements.
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