Authorities Are Checking Bally’s Video Surveillance for Evidence on Who Left the Child at the Casino
A 2-month-old baby was found in Bally’s Atlantic City Hotel and Casino under “respiratory arrest”. The child was in critical condition after being airlifted to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
New Jersey prosecutors say the baby was left in the casino on Monday night and has been in the Philadelphia hospital since that time. No one is certain who was with the baby when it was left in the casino, nor how long they were in the casino.
Premature 2-Month Old Baby
The child is said to have been premature. In such cases, a two-month old premature might be like a newborn baby. Pediatricians recommend that parents avoid crowds for at least 6 weeks after birth, due to the child’s immature immune system. Placing such a child inside a casino therefore placing the preemie in particular danger, given that Atlantic City casinos allow smoking on the gaming floor and have large crowds in peak hours.
New Jersey Investigation
No doubt, authorities are searching through security videotapes to learn more about the baby’s parent or guardian. Atlantic City casinos have intense video surveillance, to keep an eye on gamblers and dealers alike. A significant amount of tape should exist in the area of the casino where the baby was found. Visual identification of whoever left the child should be plentiful.
At present, the New Jersey State Child Protection Division, Atlantic City Police Department, and Atlantic City Prosecutor’s Office are investigating the case. No arrests have been made in the case at present. Also, prosecutors are not releasing additional details about the ongoing investigation. At some point in the near-future, they are likely to ask for help from the general public in locating the child’s family.
Charges If Parents Found
If the legal guardian can be found, then they likely would face child abandonment and child endangerment charges. Leaving a baby in critical condition inside a casino might be seen by some law enforcement officials as endangering the child’s life. On the other hand, the parents appear to have been leaving the child where it would be found, instead of alone in an alley or other remote location.
In all likelihood, it is a matter of time before the child’s legal guardians can be found. Presumably, the child would be matched against any Amber Alert or other missing person’s cases, so that likely has been ruled out for the time being.
Some have speculated that the parent or parents might have been staying at the hotel, but no evidence suggested whether that theory was correct. Instead, the child was careflighted out of state and no one seems to have come forward to claim the baby. It would seem the parent brought the child to a crowded location, hoping the child would be found.
In fact, given the baby was having respiratory distress at the time it was found, it is safe to assume the parent panicked during the baby’s respiratory attack and left it for others to care for him or her. In that case, the parent did not have the common sense to realize that a premature baby does not need to be exposed to a casino full of thousands of people, any one of whom might have an illness or disease the child, with its limited immune system, might contract a sickness from.
Updates and Other Notes
A month later, Atlantic City police never did release additional information about the premature baby, who might have left the child, whether the baby recovered from its condition, and who the newborn’s parent might be. Numerous attempts were made to learn more information on the case, yet no source seems to exist which provides the needed details. US Poker Sites will continue to follow the story and update if and when additional details are provided.
