Watch CBS News

Vandergrift Mother Charged For Throwing Newborn Baby Into Gas Station Trash Can

Follow KDKA-TV: Facebook | Twitter

NORTH BELLE VERNON, Pa. (AP/KDKA) - A woman accused of placing her newborn baby in a trash receptacle after giving birth in a gas station restroom in Westmoreland County is now facing endangerment charges.

Charges of misdemeanor child endangerment and reckless endangerment were filed Monday against 25-year-old Brittany Conway of Vandergrift.

Emergency responders were called to the station in North Belle Vernon, located right off of Interstate 70, in September 2016 for a report of a woman possibly having a miscarriage.

Authorities said a paramedic found a plastic bag in the trash receptacle and inside was a baby with umbilical cord and placenta attached. The child was taken to the hospital, and officials said at the time that she was expected to survive.

The disturbing discovery shook the community just after it happened.

"Devastating, devastating. It's awful," Valerie Hamer, an employee at a nearby business, said at the time. "She could have given that baby up for adoption, or there's so many other ways than to dispose of it in a garbage can."

Court documents don't list an attorney for Conway and a phone number for her couldn't be found Monday.

(TM and © Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.