RELEASE: July 6, 2005

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Commissioner Davy announces $150,000 in funding to save babies
Community groups asked to promote Safe Haven program

TRENTON —With the abandonment of a newborn baby girl this past weekend in Long Branch , Department of Human Services (DHS) Commissioner James M. Davy announced today $150,000 will be made available to community groups to promote the state's Safe Haven law.

“Tragedies like this recent abandonment are so unnecessary and do not have to happen,” said Commissioner Davy. “Innocent babies do not have to die when we have a Safe Haven law.”

One of the first states to have a baby abandonment law, New Jersey 's Safe Haven program took effect in August 2000. Under the law, a baby can be surrendered at a police station or hospital emergency room without fear of prosecution - provided that the baby is less than 30 days old and has not been abused or neglected. The law also provides for an annual $500,000 appropriation for a public awareness campaign.

The familiar Safe Haven media campaign “No shame. No blame. No names.” is presently featuring advertisements on cable television stations such as ABC Family, Lifetime, MTV and Nickelodeon. Safe Haven posters are also prominently featured at local shopping malls and selected NJ Transit routes.

In response to a series of abandonments in early 2004, Commissioner Davy expanded upon the existing media advertising campaign by calling for partnerships with local communities to spread the “No shame. No blame. No names.” message about Safe Haven. Since implementing the community grant program, 37 grants have been awarded for a total of $230,000.

“Safe Haven does work,” said Commissioner Davy. “Since our increased efforts to promote the program last year, six of our 20 Safe Haven babies have occurred.”

Of the 20 Safe Haven babies, 14 babies have been formally adopted through the Division of Youth and Family Services (DYFS) including the first Safe Haven baby on August 17, 2000 at Newark Beth Israel Hospital . Three additional babies are at different stages of the adoption process with the remaining three babies returned to their mothers who had a change of heart or a relative.

The most recent Safe Haven baby occurred on June 20 th at St. Peter's Medical Center in New Brunswick . The baby girl is now in a DYFS pre-adoptive home.

A request for proposals (RFP) will be released shortly with a formal announcement of grant recipients expected in early September.

For more information on the Safe Haven program, call the Safe Haven hotline at 1-877-839-2339.

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