The 19-year-old mother of a newborn baby who was discovered dead in a trash bin on the University of Tampa campus in April has been charged in the infant’s death, police announced on Friday.
The mother, Brianna Moore, is facing charges for aggravated manslaughter of a child, child neglect with great bodily harm, failure to report death, and unlawful storage of human remains, WFLA reported.
Moore was arrested in Quitman, Mississippi, and is set for extradition to Hillsborough County, according to the report.
Moore’s roommates reported hearing a baby crying on April 27 and allegedly found blood in the bathroom of their university dorm room. Moore denied being pregnant and told first responders the blood was from her menstrual period when UT police sent an ambulance to check on her, the report states.
The following day, Moore’s roommates said they allegedly found a bloody towel in her trash can. They called police again, who allegedly found the newborn baby girl dead and wrapped in a towel, according to the report.
Moore allegedly told police she gave birth to the baby girl at the bathroom in the dorm, according to the State Attorney’s Office. Moore “held the baby tight to her body until she stopped crying,” the report alleges.
A subsequent autopsy revealed that the baby had several fractured ribs and hemorrhaging in her lungs. Her death was ruled a homicide, according to the report.
“It breaks my heart to know that this baby girl could still be alive today if this woman had alerted authorities that she needed help,” State Attorney Suzy Lopez said in a statement. “Instead, she took actions that directly led to the death of her newborn baby.”
Officials emphasized that Florida’s Safe Haven Law allows parents to anonymously surrender their newborns up to 30 days after birth to designated locations, such as fire and EMS stations, or hospitals staffed by EMTs. There are also at least two Safe Haven Baby Boxes in Florida, where parents can surrender unharmed infants anonymously without risk of prosecution.
“This is a difficult and nuanced case to prosecute, and our community must continue to educate women about the many resources available to them in situations like this one. This baby’s death was avoidable,” Lopez said.
The local news outlet provided resources for at risk mothers, including:
The Crisis Center of Tampa Bay: Dial 211
Florida Department of Health, Maternal & Child Health Section: (850) 245-4047
The National Safe Haven Alliance Hotline: (888) 510-BABY (2229)
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.
