Illinios Safe Haven Law expands newborn drop off sites

Gov. Pat Quinn has expanded the number of places where parents can safely give up their newborns in Illinois to include more police stations.

Under the current Illinois Safe Haven Law parents can relinquish unharmed newborns up to 30 days old at hospitals, emergency medical care facilities, police or fire stations. The law Quinn signed Thursday now includes college or university police stations and Illinois State Police district headquarters.

University of Illinois at Chicago police lieutenant Tony Brown suggested the idea.

“We serve a population that is often immature and inexperienced and they make decisions that are often not the best decision and they make them quickly sometimes,” Brown said.

State officials say 64 newborns have been relinquished at safe havens in Illinois since 2001. Statistics show 44 percent of unplanned pregnancies occur between the ages of 18 and 24. That's why college police stations were included in the safe haven list.

The new law takes effect immediately.

WLSAM