Idaho teen arrested after dead newborn found in baby box at hospital

An Idaho teenager has been arrested over a month after a dead baby was found in the Safe Haven Baby Box at the Grove Creek Medical Center in Blackfoot, police said.

The newborn baby girl was removed from the box at the medical center “within a minute” after a medical team responded to an alarm notifying them that an infant had been placed there on Oct. 13. But it was discovered that the newborn had been dead long before she was placed in the baby box, according to a news release from Safe Haven Baby Boxes published last month.

“The Safe Haven Baby Box is intended to safely and anonymously allow custodial parents to surrender a newborn under 30 days old without legal repercussions, provided the child is unharmed,” the Blackfoot Police Department said in a news release Friday. “Unfortunately, the placement of a harmed or deceased infant is not protected under this system or Idaho law.”

Following an investigation, 18-year-old Angel N. Newberry of Twin Falls was arrested Thursday for failure to report a death to law enforcement and the coroner, according to online records. The teen was booked into the Bingham County Jail.

“Due to the sensitive nature of the ongoing investigation and the potential for further criminal charges, we are limited in the information we can provide,” police said.

NBC News has reached out to the State Public Defender’s office for comment.