A newborn baby was found in a trash can in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood on Friday, officials said. Police said the child's mother was located amid an investigation.
Both the baby and the mother are being treated at a nearby hospital, prosecutors said. They noted the role of a passerby who heard a noise from the trash can -- the woman said she alerted paramedics who happened to be nearby, and they rescued the baby.
According to the Boston Emergency Medical Service, its paramedics were called to Dorchester Avenue near Adams Street around 1 p.m., and the baby was rushed to a hospital.
The child's condition and age weren't immediately known, according to the Boston Police Department, which didn't offer more information about the infant.
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But police did say the mother of the baby was found amid an active investigation.
The Suffolk County District Attorney's Office said Friday evening that both mother and baby were in the hospital. Prosecutors didn't identify the mother or say if she was facing charges; they did emphasize in a statement that parents may legally surrender a newborn within a week at any hospital, police station or staffed fire station.
A woman said she helped find the baby in the trash can after hearing crying coming from inside.
Silvana Sanchez, who works in the area, said, "it didn't seem right." She flagged a nearby paramedic, who "grabbed a grocery bag out of the trash can. Two other EMTs came over, cut the bag open -- there was a newborn baby found inside of it."
Sanchez said she heard the baby was alive and well, though the incident left her upset.
She said that, at first, "I thought it was, like, puppies, because it just sounded fake."
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A large police presence was seen in the area, and the entrances to a few stores on Dorchester Avenue were cordoned off.
One of them was Pat's Pizza, whose owner said he had a construction crew, with a police detail, at the scene Friday until about 15 minutes before the baby is supposed to have been left in the trash. They would have been working right next to the trash can.
