safe haven law
Baby surrender statute
A safe haven law allows a parent to surrender a newborn at designated locations—hospitals, fire stations, police stations—without facing criminal prosecution for abandonment.
These laws aim to prevent infant deaths by providing a legal alternative for parents in crisis.
The permitted age varies by jurisdiction, from days old to several months: She left the baby at the hospital under the state's safe haven law.
- abandonmentAct of leaving permanently
- infantVery young child
- newbornInfant just delivered
- surrenderCease resistance, yield
- hospitalMedical treatment facility
emergency room · fire station · fire department · mother · anonymity · legal protection · protection · dropoff · baby box · baby · sanctuary · adoption · emergency · crisis · pregnancy · desperate · rescue · cradle
- birth recordsbirth date, birth name, birth record, birth registration, birth location
- child welfarechild protection, child welfare, foster care, child services, foster home
- Reproductive Rightsabortion law, abortion ban, reproductive autonomy, bodily autonomy, right to choose
- victim servicesvictim support, victim advocate, victim assistance, crisis intervention, emergency shelter