Savannah police found a newborn alive in a trash can near the Quality Inn on Abercorn Street around 2:45 a.m. on October 10, 2026, after responding to a child abandonment report. Three people were arrested in connection with the case.
Chatham Emergency Medical Services first answered a call for a patient experiencing hemorrhaging. At the hospital, crews determined the patient had recently given birth and alerted police. Sgt. Howard Crosby and Officer Richard Taylor of the Southside Precinct then located the infant in a nearby trash can in the 7100 block of Abercorn Street. The baby received immediate medical care, was transported to Memorial Health, and was placed in the custody of Georgia’s Division of Family and Children Services. Officials said the child is safe.
Dominique Welcome, 29, was arrested at Memorial Hospital and charged with cruelty to children. Jamal West, 44, was arrested at the hotel and faces the same charge. Chiquita Roche, 39, was also arrested at the hotel and charged with being a party to a crime and willful obstruction of law enforcement officers by use of threats or violence. These are the charges reported by Savannah Police Department and confirmed across local outlets including WSAV, WJCL, and WTOC. Investigators have not publicly established a motive.
Police and hospital officials used the case to highlight Georgia’s Safe Place for Newborns Act. Under the law, as updated by House Bill 350 effective July 1, 2026, a mother may surrender a newborn no more than 45 days old at an authorized medical facility, fire station, police station, or ambulance service or place the infant in a designated newborn safety device without facing criminal prosecution for abandonment, provided the child is handed to on-duty staff or left in an approved device. Identification is not required. In Savannah, designated sites include Memorial Health’s Dwaine & Cynthia Willett Children’s Hospital and Savannah Fire Department stations marked with Safe Place signage.
“We are the safe space for children of all ages that includes the youngest ones, so being able to place where mothers can come guilt-free to be able to drop off a child and say, ‘Look, I’m not able to do this, but I want this baby to survive and have the best life possible,’ is an important part of what we do here at Children’s Hospital,”
Said Michael Bossak, vice president of Children’s Hospital of Savannah.
As of the latest reports on October 12–13, the three remain charged as described, the infant remains in DFCS care, and the investigation continues. Anyone in crisis can contact Georgia’s child protective services hotline at 1-855-GACHILD or visit dhs.georgia.gov for Safe Place information.
