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TXF040920
Topic Started: Jan 5 2007, 10:33 PM (570 Views)
oldies4mari2004
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oldies4mari2004
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Reconstruction of Victim by Wesley Neville

Unidentified White Female


The victim was discovered on September 20, 2004 in Medina County, Texas
Estimated Date of Death: within 24 hours of discovery.
Cause of Death: Exposure
Named Baby Hope Medina


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Vital Statistics


Estimated age: Newborn, less than 24 hours old.
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Clothing: Located nude.
DNA: Available


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Case History
The victim was located on the side of County Road 448, near Highways 90 and 173, just north of Hondo city limits in Medina County, Texas on September 20, 2004.
The baby girl still had her umbilical cord attached.
There were no signs of trauma to the child, who was left nude beside the road, possibly for only a couple of hours.
An autopsy on the newborn girl showed she was born alive.



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Investigators
If you have any information about this case please contact:
Medina County Sheriff's Office
830-741-6153
You may remain anonymous when submitting information.

Agency Case Number: 04-03825


NCIC Number:
N/A
Please refer to this number when contacting any agency with information regarding this case.

Source Information:
Medina County Sheriff's Office
My San Antonio


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



http://www.ksat.com/news/3748844/detail.html

Medina County Rancher Finds Newborn Baby's Body

Baby Girl Found Laying On Brush

POSTED: 1:12 pm CDT September 21, 2004

SAN ANTONIO -- The body of a newborn girl was found dumped along the side of a county road Monday night in Medina County.

A rancher made the discovery on his way home from feeding cattle on County Road 448 near Highways 90 and 173.

A rancher found the baby laying on some brush off County Road 448 in Medina County.

"I saw the buzzards," said Timothy Hay. "I stopped and backed up to see what it was, and it was just a baby laying in there under the fence."

The baby girl still had her umbilical cord attached. The Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office will conduct an autopsy to determine a cause of death.

Medina County sheriff's officials are checking with area hospitals to see if the baby's mother can be located.

Anyone knowing a woman who was pregnant Monday and is no longer carrying a baby Tuesday is urged to call the Medina County Sheriff's Department at (830)741-6153.
Copyright 2004 by KSAT.com All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/texas/sto...1.a514fc0d.html

Dead baby found along Medina County road

Web Posted: 09/21/2004 02:00 PM CDT

Zeke MacCormack
San Antonio Express-News

Medina County Sheriff's investigators are searching for the parents of a dead infant found Monday night along a county road north of Hondo.

Sheriff Gilbert Rodriguez said a resident along County Road 448 called police at 7:33 p.m. saying the baby girl was near his house.

An autopsy is planned for today to determine the cause of the death and the age of the baby, Rodriguez said.

There were no signs of trauma to the child, who was left nude beside the road, possibly for only a couple of hours, the sheriff said.

"It's very disturbing," Rodriguez said. "We live in a society where if a woman doesn't want a baby, she can take it to a fire house, school or a hospital under (the) Baby Moses (law). That didn't happen."

Baby Moses allows parents of babies that are less than 60 days old to drop off the child with officials and not be charged with abandonment. The baby then can be placed for adoption.

Investigators are asking for anyone who knows about the parents or who helped with the delivery of the girl to call the sheriff's office at (830) 741-6150.

zeke@express-news.net


http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/texas/sto...d.a75d2023.html

Newborn's body found on Medina farm road

Web Posted: 09/22/2004 12:00 AM CDT

Zeke MacCormack
San Antonio Express-News

HONDO — The tiny body was found only a pebble roll off the pavement, splayed amid thorny mesquite trees, beside a crumpled beer can, just beyond a barbed wire fence along County Road 448 in Medina County.

To rancher Timothy Hay's shock as he headed home from feeding cattle Monday evening, he stumbled upon the naked corpse abandoned there just a few hours earlier.

"We were just riding by on a four-wheeler and backed up to see why the buzzards were there," Hay, 48, said of he and his wife, Susan. "I didn't approach it once I figured out what it was. I just backed off."

The infant, dubbed "Baby Hope Medina," was left there, without a blanket, roughly six miles from the local hospital.

Preliminary autopsy results left many questions unanswered Tuesday about the loss of a life so young.

"It looked like a baby that was sound asleep," Sheriff Gilbert Rodriguez said, adding that there was no sign of injury or trauma to the girl's body other than a cut umbilical cord.

Investigators mounted an extensive search Tuesday for the parents of the newborn, while locals looked in vain for an explanation for the tragedy.

"As a parent, I don't know who could ever do that," said Carol Nichols, a 43-year-old store clerk. "I could never imagine losing a child."

The death was just the second in the San Antonio region of an abandoned baby since the state's "Baby Moses" law went into effect in 1999.

The only other death was in March 2003 when a baby was found dead in a trash bin near Steele Elementary School in San Antonio.

Since then at least seven babies around the area have been handed legally to firefighters or hospital workers and their parents were not prosecuted for abandoning the child.

An autopsy on the newborn girl found Monday showed she was born alive, Rodriguez said, but it couldn't be determined without further testing whether she was alive when abandoned.

Preliminary findings did not reveal a cause of death for the child who appeared to be Hispanic and had about four inches of umbilical cord attached, he said.

Rodriguez said she apparently was abandoned within six hours of being found by Hay on the narrow road.

"It's just a really sad thing, really unnecessary," Hay said.

Local investigators could not recall another case in which a baby was abandoned in a remote setting north of town like the farm road that's popular with illegal trash dumpers.

Rodriguez said hospitals and physicians across South Texas are being asked to review records to see if any of their patients may be the mother of the infant who will be buried Thursday in a pauper's grave in the Hondo Cemetery.

Cases involving the death of a newborn often occur out of fear, experts say.

Most abandoned babies are left by young mothers who live alone or with their parents, who rarely have contact with the men or boys who impregnated them, officials said.

Locals were predictably unsettled by upon hearing of a newborn left to face elements.

Local book store owner Phil Zabst, 33, said, "Considering how most states now have baby giveaway programs, it's just horrendous. It was murder and it was premeditated."

Rodriguez said if the parents are found, one or both could face charges ranging from negligence to capital murder, depending on what occurred after the baby was born.

Resident Hilda Chapa, 67, grieved for the young victim.

"The child didn't have a chance to defend herself. It's uncalled for," she said. "Drop her off at a fire station, not in the middle of nowhere. That is so terrible."

zeke@express-news.net



http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/sto...l.afde8917.html

Hundreds mourn baby found dead by road in Medina County

Web Posted: 09/23/2004 03:06 PM CDT

Zeke MacCormack
Express-News Staff Writer

HONDO — Hundreds of mourners gathered around a tiny white casket today at Hondo Cemetery to pay respects to a baby denied the chance to live.

Sobs arose as Father Jeff Pehl led prayers for the day-old infant dubbed "Hope Medina" who was found dead Monday evening in the brush beside County Road 448.

"I must believe that Hope feels your love," Pehl, of St. John's Catholic Church, told the crowd.

He also prayed for the tot's parents, who are being sought by sheriff's investigators.

"Pray they understand that help is out there," he said. "Pray they do nothing to harm themselves."

Preliminary autopsy results did not determine whether the baby was alive when left naked by the road previously known as an out-of-the-way dumping ground for litterers.

Sheriff Gilbert Rodriguez, who read a prayer at the graveside service, said public tips about the possible identity of the parents have led to the questioning of about 10 young women.

The parents, if found, could face charges ranging from neglect to capital murder, depending on what occurred after the child's birth.

He praised the community for its "overwhelming" show of support at today's services.

Beside flowers and teddy bears, donations for the discarded child included a dress and a headstone.

"This has touched the community a lot," said Hondo Funeral Home Director Roger Hernandez. "They've really come together and are united."

Patsy Velasquez, 42, brought her three children to pay respects.

"I just feel bad," she said. "I wish they could find her mom."

Her daughter, Arlene, 19, said "It's hard to see how somebody could do something so cruel to a baby."

zeke@express-news.net



http://www.ksat12.com/news/3757187/detail.html

Funeral Held For Newborn Left On Medina County Road

200 Mourners Say Goodbye

POSTED: 11:56 pm CDT September 23, 2004
UPDATED: 6:15 am CDT September 24, 2004

HONDO, Texas -- More than 200 mourners attended the graveside service Thursday at Hondo Cemetery for a newborn baby who was found on the side of a Medina County road.

The mourners, who brought flowers, toys and prayers, were people like Hondo resident Lupita Sanchez, who never knew Baby Hope.

"She's just innocent," Sanchez said. "And that hurt me because I already had a baby myself."

Medina County sheriff's deputies were also at the services, videotaping the faces in the crowd, hoping the newborn's parents came to say goodbye.

Sheriff Gilbert Rodriguez said he has received some tips about the baby, but they are coming in slowly.

"We've received approximately 15 (tips)," Rodriguez said. "They're centered around Medina County and a couple in San Antonio."

On Monday evening, a flock of buzzards alerted a rancher to the disturbing discovery.

Anyone knowing a woman who was pregnant Monday and is no longer carrying a baby Tuesday is urged to call the Medina County Sheriff's Department at (830) 741-6153.


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