Jersey City police confirmed on Tuesday published reports that they are conducting an investigation in connection with the alleged dumping of a newborn baby boy recently.
Jersey City police spokesperson Lt. Edgar Martinez said police are searching garbage dumps in New Jersey and Pennsylvania for the body of a baby boy delivered at Jersey City’s Christ Hospital on Dec. 21.
Bashere Davon Moyd Jr. was born in the hospital to Kalynn Moore of Jersey City. But Moore’s attorney, Michael Anise, told the Jersey City Reporter that doctors worked on the infant for 20 minutes after the baby was born until he passed away. Anise said Moore’s cousin, Nicia Royster, was a witness to the baby being cleaned, brought to the mother for her to hold for an hour, and then brought to the hospital morgue to be stored in a refrigeration unit.
Anise said the baby was then supposed to be picked up by a funeral home on Jan. 2 for his funeral. But instead, it was discovered that the baby was not in the morgue and may have been tossed out with regular hospital trash.
Anise said a lawsuit will be considered depending on whether the baby is found. “I can’t understand how the baby was unintentionally dumped in the trash,” Anise said.
Christ Hospital issued the following statement on the missing baby, claiming it was stillborn:
“Christ Hospital is cooperating fully with the Jersey City Police Department in trying to locate the remains of a stillborn infant. The stillborn was delivered on Dec. 21, 2008 and placed in the hospital’s morgue. The remains were unable to be located on Jan. 2, 2009 when a local funeral home came to the hospital. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family, and we hope to bring this unfortunate situation to a resolution as soon as possible. No further comment at this time.”
The issue of whether the baby was stillborn or born alive then died can make a difference regarding litigation, since according to New Jersey law, a stillborn baby is not considered a person.