What to Know
- A 15-year-old girl has been charged with murder for allegedly dumping her newborn baby in a dumpster.
- The baby was pronounced dead at the hospital just after 10:30 p.m. on New Year's Eve, police said.
- An autopsy revealed the baby died from asphyxiation, sources told NBC10.
A 15-year-old girl has been charged with murder for allegedly dumping her newborn baby in a dumpster.
The baby was pronounced dead at the hospital just after 10:30 p.m. on New Year's Eve, police said.
The teenager, who NBC10 is not identifying, is currently hospitalized, police said.
Philadelphia Police said they were notified by the mother of a friend of the suspect, who approached police near the intersection of Judson Street and Lehigh Avenue and said she had found the baby boy.
They also said they believed the teen had given birth inside the bathroom of a home her mother shared with other tenants on West Lehigh Avenue. The teen then allegedly put the baby in a trash bag and may have killed him before doing so, according to investigators.
The baby was found in the trash bag at a lot about a block away.
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The teen was initially charged with child endangerment. Police sources told NBC10 however that the autopsy revealed the baby died from asphyxiation and was born alive but killed a short time later. The teen was then charged with murder.
Police haven't revealed whether anyone else in the home knew the girl was pregnant or had given birth.
"That's what we're trying to determine," Philadelphia Police Capt. Sekou Kinebrew said. "Whether there was anyone physically present. There may have been people at home but they may not have been in the actual proximity to where she gave birth."
The teen was hospitalized for "precautionary medical treatment," police said. Investigators continue to collect evidence. Sources say the teen and her mother have both been cooperative throughout the investigation.
