Senator plans to work on law to allow baby boxes in Indiana

An Indiana senator says he plans to work on legislation that would allow the use of baby boxes in which a mother could anonymously give up her newborn.

Sen. Travis Holdman, a Republican from Markle, said Friday he plans to begin work on the legislation after learning about concerns Department of Child Services Director Mary Beth Bonaventura has about baby boxes. In letters obtained Thursday by The Associated Press, Bonaventura wrote that a parent who used a baby box could be charged with child abandonment.

Holdman says there are a lot of issues that the General Assembly has to look at, including regulations for the boxes, a system of inspecting the boxes and requirements about how organizations keep them up.

(Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP)

The director of the Indiana Department of Children Services has warned an organization that installed two baby boxes at firehouses where mothers can drop off unwanted newborns anonymously to remove them.

According to letters obtained by The Associated Press, DCS Director Mary Beth Bonaventura wrote the Safe Haven Baby Box organization saying she questions the safety of the boxes. She also said the agency would have to investigate the use of such a box as a case of child abandonment.

Bonaventura also recommended Safe Haven Baby Box not install any more boxes. Founder Monica Kelsey says the group doesn't plan to stop.

Kelsey said she plans to install two more baby boxes in Indiana and another in Ohio. Her attorney, James Bopp, said the two will be installed in urban areas in central Indiana.

(Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)