This is a strange story. I just called the Mesa, AZ, Police Public Relations Dept., and it is what it is. I was told there is a “procedural” investigation ongoing.
flushing toilet.jpgWhile I’m sure there is protocol for removing dead human bodies from crime scenes, there is apparently a disconnect when it comes to removing premature human baby bodies. Stories about this incident called the baby a “fetus,” but actually s/he was not. Once a baby is born, no matter what gestational age, s/he may be called any number of terms – baby, neonate, infant, newborn, child – but “fetus” is no longer an option.
So officers inexplicably decided to flush this baby – evidence if nothing else – down the toilet. My first thought was the baby had been medically aborted, another reason to retain the body, because this likely would have been an illegal abortion.
If nothing else – if there were no ulterior motives for literally flushing the evidence – then this shows utter callousness regarding the humanity of very young children.
From the Associated Press, June 4…

Four officers responded to a call of a possible miscarriage Monday at the Motel 6 in Mesa where they arrested a man on suspicion of drug-related offenses and discovered a woman in the room apparently had miscarried a 4-inch fetus that was an estimated 12 to 14 weeks old, according to Gascón.
Although both Mesa fire and police were present in the motel room, Lt. Lynn Young told the officers and fire personnel over the phone not to take the fetus but to flush it down the toilet….
A supervisor who was reading incident reports at the Dobson District station first came across details about the disposal of the fetus….
Police said Young was placed on paid administrative leave along with the other 3 officers who responded to the call involving the miscarriage — Kristen Johnson, Robert Buquo and Glenn Pearson, who was the lead officer in the case.

From the Arizona Republic:

Gascón said there was some confusion among police and fire officials as to what to do with the fetus, which was wrapped in a paper towel. Eventually an officer opted to flush it down the toilet.

And from Tribune.com:

Photos were taken of the fetus, but the room and sheets at the motel were cleaned, eliminating the possibility of any further evidence to be examined….
Using medical terms provided to them, Gascón was quick to say that it was a fetus and not a baby that was flushed down the toilet, and under normal circumstances, the fetus would need to be transported to a hospital to be examined by a medical examiner.
Assistant Mesa Fire Chief Dan Stubbs… said, “there is no standard protocol for such a call.”

And from KTAR:

“What occurred here, I have never seen in my entire career,” Gascon said.
He said when officers who encounter miscarriages or abortions performed in back rooms, “Generally, either the fetus is transported to the hospital or it becomes a case for the medical examiner.”

[HT: Mary Ellen F.]

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