A teenager from New Mexico is currently facing first-degree murder charges following an incident where she allegedly gave birth in a hospital bathroom and subsequently discarded her newborn son in a trash can.
According to the Artesia Police Department, Alexee Trevizo, a 19-year-old resident of New Mexico, gave birth to a baby boy on January 27 at Artesia General Hospital. The tragic incident was reported by KOAT News. A subsequent autopsy performed on the newborn indicated that the cause of death was asphyxiation, as reported by the Mirror.
Authorities stated that in late January, Trevizo had gone to the hospital due to complaints of back pain. Upon discovering her pregnancy through a medical examination, the young woman locked herself inside a hospital bathroom for an extended period, refusing to come out, as confirmed by the police.
Eventually, the bathroom door was opened, revealing a significant amount of blood on the floor, as mentioned in the Daily Star. Hospital staff conducted thorough searches of the toilet and the top of the trash can, but found nothing. However, during the cleanup process, an employee noticed that the trash bag was unusually heavy.
Upon further inspection by two nurses, the bag was found to contain a newborn boy who displayed no signs of life and was cold to the touch, according to a court record.
Mirror reported that police body camera footage from the hospital seemed to show Trevizo admitting to abandoning her baby. In the video, she can be heard saying, “It came out of me, I put it in the bag. In the trash bag. I’m sorry, mom.” Although visibly confused and traumatized, she also repeatedly mentions that the baby did not cry.
Trevizo’s attorney, Gary C. Mitchell, asserts that his client was unaware of her pregnancy prior to giving birth and denies any involvement in the baby’s death.
Infanticide and infant abandonment are common in the United States and worldwide. New Mexico, also happens to be one of the states that does not have any gestational limits whatsoever on abortion. In fact, after Roe V. Wade was overturned and Texas outlawed the killing of children in the womb, New Mexico Democrats pledged $10 Million to build an abortion clinic on the Texas/New Mexico border.
Similar to abortion, infanticide involves the termination of a unique and valuable child who relies entirely on their parents for survival. The pro-life movement seeks to protect newborns from both infanticide and abortion by advocating for safe haven laws, adoption, and providing resources to support pregnant and parenting families.
In the United States, all 50 states have implemented safe haven laws that allow mothers to surrender their newborns safely to authorities, often at designated locations such as police stations or hospitals, without facing legal consequences as long as the infant remains unharmed. Additionally, several states have installed baby boxes at fire stations, providing another safe option for surrendering newborns. Typically, these laws allow for safe surrender within a specific time frame, such as up to 30 days after the baby’s birth.