Police Charge Mother Of “Wal-Mart Baby”
Wednesday, August 29, 2007 at 16:23
The Prince Albert Police have charged a 21-year-old woman who made national headlines after leaving her newborn baby in a toilet in a Wal-Mart store earlier this year.
The unidentified mother — a member of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band — is facing a charge of child abandonment.
In a release issued by police earlier this afternoon, the police say the charge is applied to “everyone who unlawfully abandons or exposes a child who is under the age of ten years, so that its life is or is likely to be endangered, or its health is or is likely to be permanently injured”.
The child was rushed to hospital and recovered from its ordeal. He is currently under the care of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band’s Indian Child and Family Services branch.
The woman turned herself into the La Ronge RCMP several days after the incident after the police launched a widespread appeal for her to come forward to seek medical attention.
Inspector Howard Georgeson says the mother is currently not in custody, but will have to appear in court at a later date.