Baby found in south Edmonton parking lot died prior to birth, autopsy shows

Edmonton police say an autopsy has determined the dead baby found in a south Edmonton parking lot on the weekend had already died prior to birth.

Police said the autopsy had been completed Thursday and showed the male infant was dead prior to birth, though the cause and manner of death are pending additional testing.

Police said homicide detectives continue to investigate the death, which is still considered suspicious.

In a news release Friday, police said investigators do not believe the death is connected to any area businesses.

The owner of a south Edmonton barbershop told CBC earlier this week he was shocked after one of his clients discovered a dead baby lying in a snowy parking spot near the business on Saturday.

The barbershop is located in a shopping complex on the southwest corner of Ellerslie Road and Parsons Road S.W.

The owner said he spotted a box on the ground in the parking lot when he came to work at 10 a.m., but didn't think anything of it.

Hours later, he said, one of his clients left the shop around 2 p.m. and saw a baby lying a couple of centimetres away from a box on the ground, near his parked vehicle. 

The client returned to the business to report what he saw and the owner called 911 immediately. Paramedics arrived within a few minutes.

Safe drop-offs option available

Bonnie Tejada, chief mission and ethics officer at Covenant Health, said earlier this week the incident has left staff at the health-care provider feeling sad and concerned.

"We also always wonder if people know about the angel cradles as an option for a safe haven for newborns," Tejada said.

Under the Angel Cradle program, Covenant Health provides two safe drop-off places in Edmonton. They are described as last-resort options for parents who feel they can't keep a newborn baby.

One is outside the emergency department at the Misericordia Community Hospital. The other is outside the emergency department at the Grey Nuns Community Hospital.

After a baby is left in the angel cradle, a delayed alarm is triggered, giving the adult time to walk away without being identified.

Each baby left in an angel cradle is admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit. Alberta's Children and Family Services arranges for someone to care for the baby going forward.

Tejada said three babies have been dropped off since the program started in 2013. All three of those cases occurred in the past seven years. 

"It really removes that risk of unsafe abandonment, which is of course what we're sensitive to when we hear, in the cold weather, about a baby being left outside," she said.