Children Services Promotes Ohio’s 30-Day Safe Haven Law

COLUMBUS, Ohio—Two babies were abandoned locally in less than a month, and some people are questioning the visibility of the state’s Safe Haven law.

The state’s Safe Haven law allows new parents to drop an unharmed newborn with a police officer or medical worker with no questions asked.

How well has the law been promoted?

NBC 4 looked at where the campaign for that law stands.

New parents have 30 days to drop off an infant with no questions asked. That 30-day rule was adopted with Senate Bill 304, which was introduced by Senator Gary Cates.

SB 304 was signed into law by Strickland in late 2008 and took effect March 24, 2009.

Before that, new parents had 72 hours to drop off a newborn.

A newborn boy was found in a grassy area outside a Lewis Center Meijer Tuesday, June 9.

A mail carrier found a newborn girl on the porch of a vacant house on Marble Drive, near Livingston Avenue, at about 10 a.m. Saturday, June 27.

Franklin County Children Services has been preparing new brochures and posters to help raise awareness about Ohio’s Safe Haven law.

New posters and pamphlets have to be made to update the law change that took effect last year, increasing the allowable age from 72 hours old to younger than 30 days.

Parents can drop off unwanted infants anonymously as long as there are no signs of abuse or neglect.

Since the original law took effect, about 60 people have taken advantage of it.

FCCS continues to work with schools, churches and the Latino and Somali communities to spread the word.

Go to http://www.franklincountyohio.gov/children_services/ for more information.

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