SAN ANTONIO – A local organization is pushing to change a law aimed at saving the lives of children. They say the Baby Moses law needs to be improved.
- Baby Moses law passed in 1999
- Law now applies to all states
- Currently applies to newborns 60 days or younger
The Baby Moses law allows parents to abandon newborns 60 days old or younger at a designated safe place with no questions asked provided the baby is unharmed.
The local group, though, wants that age limit to be changed to 12 months.
Eagles Flight Advocacy and Outreach primarily provides therapy for children, but members also fundraise for funeral costs to bury children who were victims of child abuse. They’ve buried 24 infants since 2014.
The group believes amending the Baby Moses law to include children up to a year old could provide parents who have slipped back into bad habits an opportunity to give up their babies rather than abuse them.
The group’s Executive Director says a 1-year-old could face more trauma than a 60-day-old who is abandoned, but she says therapy is better than death.
"I understand how some people might think, 'Oh my gosh, that baby, it's older.' Yes. But would you prefer that that baby be in a grave? Because that's what I see. I see this end result here. And we need to look at the bigger picture,” said Pamela Allen.
The group is currently working to bury the remains of 3-month-old Devin Stripling, the little boy whose body was found decomposed in a storage trunk on the West Side a year ago.
The Baby Moses law was first passed in Texas in 1999 and was later adopted by all states. Two states already have the 1-year age limit.
Child advocates in Texas say they're working with lawmakers to make the change and they're confident they have the support to make it happen.