A woman is facing charges after she allegedly walked into a Jiffy Lube on Floyd Road and handed her 6-month-old daughter to employees, telling them to call police if she didn't come back. Officers were called to the auto maintenance shop in the 5500 block of Floyd Road on Saturday, October 24, after staff reported that a woman had tried to leave her infant in their care. The baby was wearing wet, soiled clothes and had rashes, and workers told investigators the child had not been bathed in some time.
According to WSB-TV, Laraven Davis told the Jiffy Lube employees that she might not come back, and if she did not, they should call the police. Police said the employees ended up caring for the infant for at least 20 minutes before officers arrived. Employees described the baby as wearing wet, soiled clothes with a diaper rash and a rash under her chin, the station reported.
Cobb County police said the infant had multiple rashes but was otherwise in overall good health, according to CBS News Atlanta. The child was taken to a local hospital for treatment and was later placed in the custody of the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services, the outlet reported.
Charges and Custody Status
Davis was arrested and charged with child abandonment and reckless conduct, both misdemeanors, per the same account from the station's report. She was granted a $4,000 bond, though CBS News Atlanta reported she remains in custody at the Cobb County Adult Detention Center.
What Georgia's Safe Haven Law Actually Covers
Georgia does have a law allowing a mother to leave a qualifying newborn at specified locations without facing prosecution, but the state's own guidance narrows who can lawfully accept such a child. Under Georgia law, only currently employed state Department of Human Services or Division of Family and Children Services workers are permitted to take custody of a Safe Haven baby, and that custody can only happen when the child is left with an employee, agent, or staff member of a medical facility, fire station, police station, public safety vehicle, ambulance service, or in a newborn safety device, according to the Georgia Department of Human Services.
Separate department policy materials add that a mother is not required to provide identification when leaving a newborn at an approved Safe Haven location, though the person receiving the child should obtain her name and address if she is willing to share them, per the Georgia DHS Policy and Manual Management System. Those provisions apply specifically to newborns surrendered at the approved sites the law spells out.
