Three Individuals Arrested After Newborn Found in Trash Can in Savannah, Georgia

Authorities discovered a newborn alive in a trash can in Savannah, Georgia, on Saturday morning near the Quality Inn on Abercorn Street. Three individuals have been arrested in connection with the incident. Chatham EMS Director Chuck Kearns stated that crews responded to a hospital call for a patient experiencing hemorrhaging after giving birth, but the patient did not have a child with her, as reported by WTOC 11. The Savannah Police Department (SPD) arrived at the hotel around 2:45 a.m., where Sgt. Howard Crosby and Ofc. Richard Taylor from the Southside Precinct found the baby in a nearby trash can. The infant was immediately transported to a nearby hospital for medical attention and is currently under the care of the Department of Human Services Division of Family and Children Services. Dominique Welcome, 29, Chiquita Roche, 39, and Jamal West, 44, were arrested and are facing charges for the infant's abandonment. Welcome is charged with cruelty to children, Roche is charged with party to a crime and willful obstruction of law enforcement officers by use of threats or violence, and West is charged with cruelty to children. The SPD reminded the public that Georgia's Safe Haven law allows for the legal surrender of infants up to 45 days old to hospitals, fire stations, police stations, and Safe Haven Baby Boxes.