POSTED: Sunday, May 31, 2009
UPDATED: 8:10 am EDT June 1, 2009



A driver finds a newborn in a cardboard box on the side of an Ocala road.
OCALA, Fla. -- A search is under way for the parents of a newborn who was found when a driver in Ocala spotted the infant's hand sticking out of a box that was left on the side of an isolated dirt road.

VIDEO: Driver Finds Newborn | PICS: Baby Found In Box

The driver made the discovery Saturday evening at the intersection of Northwest 17th Street and Northwest 24th Avenue in Ocala. The newborn was found in a QVC cardboard box, along with a blanket, an article of clothing and a diaper.

Paramedics said the girl, who is about 3 to 7 days old, appeared to be in good health. Ocala police said the child may have been abandoned the night before being found.

The child has been placed in the custody of the Department of Children and Families.

"It's terrible that someone would do that. I would rather them drop (the baby) on my doorstep than to do that. Take (the child) somewhere safe. They say ants had got on (the infant)," said Lois Dowdy, who lives near the location where the child was found.

"It's very sad. It's very dangerous. There are snakes out here," said Florastine Lee, who also lives nearby. "A lot of dangerous animals come out at night that could have eaten up that child, and that child did not ask to come into the world."

"I really don't understand why somebody would do something like that to a child," said Ernest Cox, who lives nearby.

Ocala police were searching for a woman driving a gray pickup with a white topper who was seen in the area on Friday at about 7:30 p.m.

"I hope they find the parents and get things resolved," Dowdy said.

"I think that child deserved better than what that mother did," Florastine said.

State law allows for an unwanted newborn to be left at a hospital, fire station or other emergency medical service station without it being considered child neglect.

Watch Local 6 News for more on this story

Unbelievable!!!

There's no excuse. In Florida, you can drop a child of at a fire station or hospital with no questoins asked and no prosecution. No reason to leave it on the road like garbage.

If they find the parents they can prosecute them for that. The child will be better off witha loving family than with its original parents. Thank goodness the driver found the baby.

very true...there are safe places to drop off a baby...not the side of the road!!!!!

I'm glad the uunfant was safe though

What could possibly be the excuse for such an action?

Thomas...not defending the actions at all...but there are REASONS....not EXCUSES. who knows what they were thinking

I don't believe there is any reason for this to have happened. As previously stated there are so many other avenues to leave, no questions, asked a child safely. As for leaving the child on the side of the road in a box, can't think of one reason nor excuse for this to have happened.

*reason/excuse* I just put the box down for a minute and forgot to pick it up

*reason/excuse* I forgot I placed the baby inside the box

fran...what I meant by a reason...could be they didn't want to be responsible, they were scared, the didn't care...they are reasns but certainly no excuse

What a deplorable way to treat a perfectly good box!

Ah come on, I'm not serious ;)

Even if they (mom/dad) claim ignorance:
forgot the baby on side of road
forgot they put the baby in a box
didn't know the options available (dropping off at a safe haven)

he/she who left the baby roadside - SUCKS!!!!!!!!!

A man taking out trash found one here last week or the week before in a dumpster wrapped in a bag. He is fine. They haven't found the parents yet.
The man that found the baby was very upset. The police were visibly shaken as well.

Kat

I wonder how much more insane this world will get?

I can't believe this sort of thing still shocks people.

It's one thing reading about it and another if you are personally involved.

It will never quit shocking me. If it does...I am in real trouble. I never want to be insensitive to such things. Children are my heart.

Kat

Ship it back to the vendor

I love yung'ns also but this kind of behavior is just so common now. How many times does it make the front page of the paper these days?

I don't care if it's an every day occurance...it still shocks me that anyone could do something like this

I think it can only be as common as we as a people will allow. How many of these has to happen before we say "enough"? When do we apply the law to be strong and fruitful? Making it such a crime as to deter it? The most these parents will get right now is a couple of years or most likely probation. This is premeditated murder. On both these cases.

When these things become "not news", then we as a nation are truly in hell. When an athlete makes front page news for smoking pot or scum on an interns dress is big news for how long, and a child left to die is buried somewhere in between?

Kat