Body of Newborn Baby Found in Hospital Trash Can: Police

A New Mexico mother has been arrested for first-degree murder after the body of her newborn baby was found in a hospital trash can, according to police.

Artesia Police Department (APD) officers, who operate in southeast New Mexico, apprehended Alexee J. Trevizo, 19, on Wednesday, May 10. They launched an investigation into the death at the Artesia General Hospital emergency room at 2:30 a.m. on January 27.

Almost 10,000 infants died before their first birthday in 2020, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The infant mortality rate in New Mexico in 2020 was 5.3 for every 100,000 births, and 116 deaths were registered that year. At least 1 in 7 children have experienced child abuse or neglect in the past year in the U.S., according to the CDC, although it says the number may be higher. The CDC added that, in 2020, 1,750 children died of abuse and neglect in the U.S.

Stock image of a police car
Stock image of a police car with flashing lights in the dark. Officers investigated after a newborn baby was found dead inside a New Mexico hospital trash can. Getty

Trevizo went to the emergency room in January for back pain and was then told that she was pregnant, according to NBC affiliate KRQE.

While at the hospital, Tevizo allegedly locked herself in a bathroom and gave birth to a boy, then tied him up in a trash bag and hid him underneath other items in the bin.

When the baby was located, he was found to have died from a lack of oxygen, according to the KRQE report.

"The deceased baby was transported to the Office of the Medical Investigator (OMI) of New Mexico who performed an autopsy of the victim. OMI determined the manner of death to be homicide on March 28, 2023," a May 10 Artesia police Facebook post read.

APD detectives presented case information to the 5th Judicial District Attorney's Office on March 28, 2023. The police statement read: "A criminal complaint was approved of the mother of the victim, identified as Alexee J. Trevizo, 19.

"Trevizo was later arrested and charged with first-degree murder, or intentional abuse of a child resulting in death and tampering with evidence."

Police said that any further details would be released "at the appropriate time."

Newsweek has contacted the Artesia Police Department for comment via its website.

There have been several occasions where fetuses and newborn babies have been left, only to be found dead later. In April, a 26-year-old woman was arrested after a human fetus was discovered deceased on a sidewalk in Flint, Michigan. The woman's identity was not shared by police, and officers added that her arrest came after she was discharged from a hospital for treatment.

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