Advocates of the Texas Safe Haven Law, or Baby Moses law, are calling attention to the option that allows babies to be surrendered legally after a woman was arrested following a baby being found inside an Austin dumpster.
The arrest of Neil Dinora Rivera Felipe, 22, who was booked in Travis County Jail Sept. 22 and charged with a second-degree felony of abandoning or endangering a child with imminent danger, has prompted advocates to boost awareness of Texas laws designed to keep infants and their mothers, who are unable to care for them, safe.
The Texas Safe Haven Law was passed in 1999 after the state saw an uptick in infant abandonment. The law allows for parents to anonymously and safely surrender infants 60 days old or younger to specific locations — like hospitals and fire stations. All other states have followed suit in passing the law…