Crime and Tragedy

 

Mother dumps day-old baby in trash can, hopes baby would die and “solve her problems”

By Dave Andrusko

Alicia Marie Englert, 23, is led to police car outside her Kearns, Utah home after allegedly leaving her day-old baby girl in neighbor’s trash can KUTV

On Tuesday police arrested Alicia Marie Englert on suspicion of attempted murder , after she reportedly dumped her one-day-old baby in a neighbor’s trash in Kearns, Utah. Authorities said the baby girl, who was airlifted to a Salt Lake City hospital, was in critical condition on a ventilator and fighting for her life.

A Probable Cause statement filed by police said “the birth mother was afraid to tell her parents about her pregnancy. She said she discarded the baby in hopes that it would die and solve her problems.”
In an all-too-familiar scenario, a woman found the baby in the trash bin in the Salt Lake City suburb of Kearns. According to the local CBS affiliate
“She heard something that sounded like a cat,” says Adora Nemitz who talked with the neighbors who found the infant. “They told me they found a baby out of the garbage can. I don’t even talk. I was just shocked.”

Detectives quickly discovered the mother lived next door. Englert told officers she’d left her baby about an hour before she was found, authorities said. Englert told police the baby had not received any medical care or food.

There were no “secondary injuries” to the baby, Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder said at the news conference. He said there was also no information about where the baby was born, if others were involved, or who is the baby’s father.

A woman who claimed to be Englert’s sister told ABC 4 News that her sister has mental issues and that she did not know she was pregnant.
“She doesn’t think like a 24-year old,” said the woman who wouldn’t offer her name. “She has like some learning disabilities.”

At the same news conference , Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams and health officials said there are resources available for expectant and new mothers, including a crisis hotline. They noted that Utah has a law under which mothers can leave newborns at hospitals, no questions asked.

Source: NRLC News