Tragic story that makes me SO mad!

Twelve Volt Man wrote: How in the heck can anyone do this once, much less THREE times? It makes me sick. It's inexcusable. Here in NC, we have a law that allows a mother to leave her newborn child with any suitable official (law enforcement officer, firefighter, doctor, etc.) without any repurcussions. I'm defintely not an advocate of a mother leaving her child, but I'd rather see her leave the child in safe hands, than to completely abandon him/her.





OROSI, Calif. - The first newborn was discovered swaddled in a blanket on a park bench, an umbilical cord still hanging from his tiny body. Then, at neat 11-month intervals, two more abandoned babies were found in parked pickup trucks in the same neighborhood.

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This week, DNA tests established all three babies were almost certainly born to the same mother.

Now, in a heartbreaking mystery that has transfixed this central California farm community of 7,300, investigators are trying to find the mother and figure out what drove her to such desperate lengths.

"How can the relatives not see this girl pregnant, and then see that she's not pregnant anymore and not ask where's the baby? Somebody must know something," said Hortencia Espino, 81.

All three newborns were found within a two-block radius. The first two — a boy and a girl — survived and are now wards of the state.

The third baby was found dead of exposure on the cold night of Dec. 3. She was enveloped in a sweatshirt in the bed of a pickup parked near the high school, some 60 miles southeast of Fresno. The coroner concluded she was alive for less than a day.

On Wednesday, a Catholic church held a baptism and funeral Mass in Spanish and English for the baby girl, who was dubbed "Angelita DeOrosi," or Orosi's little angel.

Later, under the shade of a corrugated plastic awning, sheriff's officials and grandmothers delicately sifted handfuls of dirt onto her white coffin before it was lowered into the earth.

Marely Pena, who found the infant in her father's truck, cried behind dark glasses.

"I ask myself every day what if she had been alive. We could have saved her," said Pena, 25. "I just hope the mother comes forward to please just make us feel at ease."

Orosi, a town encircled by fig and lemon orchards, has long been the kind of place where everyone seemed to know each other. But that is changing, with new housing developments going up and a burgeoning gang problem that has led to a rise in violent crime.

As upset residents built makeshift shrines in honor of Angelita, authorities interviewed local women they thought might be involved. But DNA testing eliminated them as the babies' mother.

After exhausting all leads, officials are asking the community for help finding the parents and are offering a $5,000 reward. Police said the mother could face criminal charges. But they also said they want to make sure she doesn't do it again and isn't in some kind of distress.

Investigators would not speculate as to the reasons for the abandonment, such as whether the mother might have been a prostitute or a rape victim.

"Whether the mother is in a physical state of danger or a mental state where she feels she can't ask for help, our heart goes out to her," Karen Franzen, manager of Dopkins Funeral Chapel in Dinuba, which donated a casket and cemetery plot for Angelita.

The first deserted newborn was found on Feb. 10, 2005, a barely breathing boy with a body temperature of just 85 degrees. On January 8, 2006, a resident discovered a full-term baby girl inside a pickup two blocks away, clothed in an undershirt and pants.

On Monday, sheriff's officials announced the DNA results. The first two babies probably had the same father, but Angelita was fathered by a different man.

California and 46 other states allow parents to legally abandon a child at a hospital or other designated safe zones within 72 hours of birth, no questions asked.

Since California's law went into effect in 2001, parents have safely surrendered 182 babies at fire stations, emergency rooms and other safe havens, according to state officials.

"This little community is a family. We know pretty much everyone else's business and they know ours," said Eugene Etheridge, principal of Orosi High School. "It's concerning that this could happen again when the most precious thing we have is our children."

CantWait replied: I don't understand either why someone wouldn't take advantage of resources available. Such a sad story

Cece00 replied: I dont know if this state has safe haven laws but its about time if they dont. And if they do, when they find the mother, they need to prosecute. And uh, has the mother never heard of birth control, or maybe she could just STOP HAVING SEX.

Kirstenmumof3 replied: That is so sad! I hope they find that mother!

msoulz replied: Words just can't express the feelings.

Twelve Volt Man replied:
Amen! I get so tired of seeing this, on a daily basis, at work. People (men included) aren't responsible enough to control their own lives, so they end up bringing a baby into the world whom they can't/don't want to care for. The only one who suffers is the poor, innocent child who didn't ask to be born and raised in such a lifestyle. It's pathetic.

kimberley replied: it is sad but i reserve judgement until i have all the facts. could be a young girl abused by a family member who is dumping the kids. ya never know. i do hope they find her.

punkeemunkee'smom replied: I am usually so angry at stories like this but strangely I had the exact same thought as Kim IDK why someone would do something like this but it seems as though whoever this mother is she tried in some way to get the babies somewhere they may be found and they were all clothed or covered the article says-obviously she is becoming pregnant again almost immediately after these babies are born and I just hope it is not as bad as the situation could be-It said the first 2 were fathered by the same man...that doesn't seem the mark of a prostitute It is a tragic and sick story and IF this mother is in some sort of peril herself I hope they figure out who she is and stop this from happening again

luvmykids replied: I agree that it doesn't sound like some woman just "dumping" these babies for the heck of it but it's still so very sad for many reasons

Cece00 replied: It could be, but I'm not getting that vibe. There is no way that someone wouldnt see what is going on & wondering why she is pregnant & then not pregnant if she is a young girl in school.

& one of the babies didnt have the same father but the first two probably did, so that doesnt sound like abuse IMO.

And, I just reread & Ca DOES have safe haven laws, so if this girl/woman had time to dump kids in cars, she had time to bring them to a hospital/church/firestation/police station, so I believe she should be prosecuted for something along the lines of murder because the one baby died.

punkeemunkee'smom replied:
I believe what Kim is saying and I feel the same way is MAYBE it is not her choice to 'stop' having sex... It doesn't seem to be a normal situation and if she was completely unfeeling about these babies then she could just throw them in the trash like so many do

Cece00 replied:
Yeah, sorry, I didnt read that through the whole way, I was reading & didnt see what she meant. I corrected my post.

Twelve Volt Man replied:
I agree. The law doesn't allow for someone to leave a child to die, regardless of how the child was conceived. IF the mother was the victim of sexual abuse, however tragic that is, she is NOT entitled to leave that child to die in the bed of a pickup truck. I don't mean to minimize others' opinions, but in my eyes, when there's a death of an innocent baby, I have little sympathy for the person who killed it or allowed it to die. Over the years, I've just gotten tired of seeing innocent children die.

redchief replied: I pray for the soul of the child, and that the mother finds the ability, will and courage to step forward, regardless of the situation she is in.

kimberley replied: this is why i don't post much... no time to type detail and what i say is often misconstrued. i do feel that abandoning a baby is reprehensible but my point was that none of us know what the circumstances are or even if it was the mother who abandoned the child. could be a grandparent, rapist or anyone who left the baby to die. i do believe whoever did it deserves punishment, especially considering the safe haven law, but i won't make assumptions on who that is. the mother could be a victim herself.

Mommy2BAK replied: Wow! That is just so tragic! I have to agree with Kimberly and Abbie, I'm getting a weird vibe that there is something more to the story, I agree that she could definately find a better place to drop off the infants, but the fact that she left them fully clothed and somewhere public so that someone would find them tells me that she wanted more for the baby then she figured she could give, if she didn't care at all she would have dumped them in a trash can as we have heard on the news before. (that made me ill to even write )

Anyways, just speculation... thats all anyona can really do.

A&A'smommy replied: that breaks my heart WHY would you do that to your child!!!

Twelve Volt Man replied: I apologize if my posts were mercurial and argumentative. I've had a rough few days at work and this story struck a nerve. It was never my intention to begin a debate, but rather to share a tragic story. We all are entitled to our opinions. Anyone who spends his/her free time on a parenting message board, obviously is not indifferent to a child's suffering. I certainly did not want to stir things up, and realize that my last post or two could be seen as inflammatory.

Jackie012007 replied: I dunno how anyone could do that to a defenseless newborn baby, I don't care what the circumstances are!!

stella6979 replied:
I couldn't agree with you more. I honestly think when women choose to do this type of thing, their rights to ever be a Mother should be terminated. If that means giving these women hysterectomies or whatever, then so be it. The safe haven law allows you to leave the child at a church, fire station or police station with no questions asked. For her to leave them out in the cold is just heartless.

punkeemunkee'smom replied: I probably should have been more clear in my thought process, as well. I am the first one to say,ESPECIALLY but not exclusively, in light of the safe haven laws that someone who dumps a baby (most of the time around here we hear about people finding them in a dumpster ) should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. In this story,however something struck me as odd. I wish I still thought that
I unfortunately do not believe anymore that people are so willing to face the horrific things that happen to too many children right in our own backyards. I also agree with Kimberly again that it may not be the mother who is dumping them. They are clearly brand new babies when placed out in the open,it seems odd that she would be delivering them herself and having the strength to go place them somewhere right after, I would guess she has 'help'. However this whole sad story plays out, and if this woman is guilty of just walking away,I do agree that she should be charged with murder, I hope that the babies how were rescued live healthy and happy lives and my heart breaks for the angel who did not make it.

holley79 replied: How sad. We ahve safe zones here in FL also and I don't understand why she couldn't do the right thing and do the "No questions asked".

mom2my2cuties replied:


Very well said Abbie. We are all to often wanting to see the best of those around us to the point that we are blind to the evil that may lay just under the surface. A feeling I know all too well sadly.

And on the assumption that this could be a young/teen girl -

Right now, teenage pregnancy is running so rampart in our world, that people tend to not even notice and just assume the girl is permiscuious (sp sorry) and don't question it. Also a lot of teen pregnancies also end in adoption, so again, I believe those surrounding this situation probably didn't think twice when they saw a young girl who was pregnant and is suddenly not.

punkeemunkee'smom replied: I read the article today on AOL and the first baby was actually left on a porch on the front step of a house. Obviously so that the baby was assured of being found. As far as the question why not a firestation or church-maybe there is not one close enough or maybe this girl/woman is afraid to be caught. I don't believe that most people probably really feel that they won't be asked any questions and maybe,since this community is so small,she is afraid she will be recognized. As far as her being noticably pregnant...that is all up for speculation too. I have several close friends who are bigger women and they go through their entire pregnancies with little or no notice taken at all. The younger girl who works at our gas station was holding a brand new baby the other day and I asked who he belonged to (while admiring him ) She said he is mine! I see her 3 times a week and she NEVER looked pregnant-trust me if I don't notice Tay does (Like I said these women are not tiny but they are not THAT big either ) I also went to school with several,very thin, girls who hid their pregnancies well into the 3rd trimester for fear of the trouble they were going to get into. One of the girls on our dance team was actually only found out when she passed out on the football field-she delivered a full term baby 2 weeks later! All I am saying is this situation is obviously out of the normal relm IDK what the truth might be and punishment or not I just hope they find out who this person is,and why, before another child loses their life!

HuskerMom replied:
I totally agree.