*The surveillance system at the El Patron restaurant in Jersey City captured the moment a teenager handed over her newborn to a customer and then left.
According to ABC 7 NYC, Alease Scott and her boyfriend Walter Cocca were eating lunch when the 14-year-old asked for help.
“I said do you mind if I check the baby’s vitals, she readily handed the baby over to me so my focus went right onto the baby,” Scott said.
The teen handed the baby to Scott and the infant still had a portion of the umbilical cord attached. Scott could tell the baby was struggling to breathe. Fortunately, she is trained in CPR and first aid and was able to assist when police responded with medical gear and oxygen, according to the report.Â
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“Once I applied the oxygen mask to the baby, all of a sudden we heard the most beautiful cry and the baby started moving, she slightly opened up her eyes and then she closed her eyes but the sweetest thing was when she got hungry and she was trying to suckle on the oxygen mask so we knew she was OK after that,” Scott said.
Police found the teen mother and said she is not facing charges. The child, who is doing well, will be put up for adoption, according to the report.Â
“I’m just so happy I was there to help because she just was desperate and didn’t know what to do, she was so young,” Scott said.
“And hopefully we as a society become better at just helping one another, especially after COVID,” restaurant owner Frankie Aguilar said.
New Jersey is a Safe Haven state, where parents and guardians can drop off newborns 30 days and younger at hospitals, police stations, or fire stations, according to the report.Â
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