Washington - UPI
A homeowner stopping to check on his vacant property notices a trail of blood and follows it to find, in a trash can behind the house, amongst bloody towels, inside a plastic grocery bag wrapped in a pink blanket, abandoned by its mother, a newborn baby in critical condition. The infants mother, 28-year-old Sharon Ferguson, was taken into custody for questioning in front of a liquor store. According to WBTV, Police reports confirm that Ferguson gave birth to the boy in the vacant house, wrapped the newborn infant in a plastic bag and a blanket, discarded the child in a trash can, then walked to the liquor store. The Greenville woman was charged with one count of attempted murder and one count of unlawful neglect of a child or helpless person. The child is alive and in "good condition" at an area hospital according to the Public Relations Director for the South Carolina Department of Social Services. Police would like to remind citizens that South Carolina's "Safe Haven Law" permits leaving a baby up to 30 days old with an employee on duty at any hospital, law enforcement agency, fire station, EMS provider, or place of worship.