Naked newborn with umbilical cord attached found alive in Florida backyard, cops say

A naked newborn was abandoned in the dark outside a north Florida home over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, according to police.

The discovery was made at about 12:40 a.m. Sunday, Nov. 26, on North 17th Street in Palatka, police said in a news release. Palatka is about 60 miles south of Jacksonville.

A caller told police the baby was found wrapped in a blanket, sitting in a backyard.

“When officers arrived, they determined the child had just been born as the umbilical cord was still attached and the baby was nude,” police said in the news release. “The complainant, whose name is not being released at this time, told officers she did not know where the baby came from or who had put the child in the yard.”

Putnam County EMS took the child to HCA Florida Putnam Hospital in Palatka, where “the baby is in stable condition and doing well.”

Investigators say “physical evidence” at the site led them to suspect the baby had been born in the adjacent home, then placed in the yard.

“Investigators were able to determine a 15-year-old female who resides in the residence gave birth to the child,” officials said.

Details of how the infant ended up in the backyard were not released, and police did not report charges had been filed. An investigation is ongoing, officials said.

Palatka saw a low temperature of about 59 degrees Sunday, Nov. 26, according to AccuWeather.

This story was originally published November 28, 2023 at 11:00 AM with the headline "Naked newborn with umbilical cord attached found alive in Florida backyard, cops say."