Ashley Aileen Maile Lum drags her newborn baby by umbilical cord along Hilo street before fleeing as authorities now consider charging homeless Hawaii woman.
A homeless Hawaii woman gave birth on a sidewalk — then allegedly dragged her newborn daughter by the umbilical cord down the street.
Ashley Aileen Maile Lum, 41, gave birth at Mamo and Keawe streets in downtown Hilo about 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, the Hawaii Tribune-Herald reported.
Shocked witnesses said the mom began dragging the baby by the umbilical cord before the child became detached from her mom and Lum fled. The mother now potentially faces child abandonment charges, KHON2 News reported.
Pregnancy in the realm of 38 weeks (9.5 months)
First-responders found the newborn still attached to the cord on the sidewalk.
‘It was right in front of Pineapples Restaurant, so there were a lot of people who were able to witness the behavior and everything that followed,’ police Capt. Rio Amon-Wilkins told the Tribune-Herald.
Medical personnel cut the cord and provided assistance to the baby, who was breathing but not moving. She was rushed to Hilo Medical Center by ambulance.
‘Thankfully, the baby’s life was spared. According to the pediatric doctor that night in the hospital, she was fine,’ Amon-Wilkins told the paper.
He added that the doc estimated the length of Lum’s pregnancy ‘somewhere in the ballpark of 38 weeks, so [the baby] was definitely viable.’
Once Lum was separated from her child, she began to leave the scene, officials said.
She was later detained for suspicion of abandonment of a child but also was taken to the hospital for treatment and observation.
Case to be reviewed by Prosecutors
Lum was later released without being charged pending further investigation because she was admitted to the hospital, the Tribune-Herald reported.
Abandonment of a child is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in jail.
The mom, who has has a minor criminal record and no prior felony convictions, has been living for years in the downtown area, where she has been seen shouting at passing cars and pedestrians, according to the outlet.
Upon completion of their investigation, police will route the appropriate charges to the Office of the Prosecuting Attorney for review.
‘We will forward it to the prosecutors shortly, and there’s not much left for us to do on the investigation,’ Amon-Wilkins said. ‘In my almost 25 years, I’ve never seen a case like this.’
The baby has been determined to be in good condition and was ‘transferred to the custody of Child Welfare Services,’ police said.
The whereabouts or the identity of the newborn’s father was not immediately known.
Witnesses to the incident are asked to call the police department’s non-emergency number at (808) 935-3311.
