Mother who threw newborn in trash sentenced to 30 years

An Indianapolis woman who admitted to throwing her newborn son into a bathroom trash can after giving birth at work has been given a 30-year sentence.

Briana Holland, 23, was sentenced Wednesday after pleading guilty to a charge of attempted murder for the August 2014 incident. A host of neglect and battery charges filed against her were dismissed.

Holland was ordered to serve 20 years with the Indiana Department of Correction, according to online court records. Ten years of her sentence were suspended, and she was given jail credit of 284 days.

Prosecutor Terry Curry said Holland's sentence reflects the significance of the choice she made to abandon her child after giving birth while working her night shift at at the Carrier Corp. factory.

Court documents state that on the day of the incident, one of the employees at the factory heard noises in the restroom and initially thought it was an animal in need of assistance.

A maintenance worker was called to help, and during a sweep of the women's restroom, the pair saw what appeared to be a hand inside a trash can.

The child was inside two brown paper bags, and the umbilical cord was still attached, court documents say. Investigators said the newborn had tissue wrapped about 15 times around his neck. More tissue and a plastic tampon applicator were stuffed into his mouth.

The maintenance worker pulled the obstructions from the child's mouth and wrapped the child in his yellow safety vest and shirt to keep him warm. An on-site nurse helped to tie off the umbilical cord, and the Indianapolis police were called.

"A tragic infant death was avoided by the quick actions of co-workers and first responders in saving this child's life," Curry said in a statement. "We also commend the IMPD Child Abuse unit for their work in protecting the child and resolving this case."

Investigators learned that Holland was working when she left her station to give birth in the bathroom

She told investigators she was scared because she was young, in college and didn't know how she was going to support the child, court documents say.

She told a detective that the child was silent when she placed him in the trash and that she wanted to get back to work because someone else was doing her job, documents state. She later said she was unsure what would happen to her son, but she assumed that the newborn would die.

The factory where Holland worked is less than a block away from the Wayne Township Fire Department station. Under Indiana's Safe Haven Law, the baby could have been dropped off safely at the station, and then Holland could have legally walked away.

According to the law, enacted in 2000, any responsible adult may give custody of a baby less than 30 days old to any hospital emergency room, police station or fire station in Indiana. As long as there are no signs of intentional abuse on the child, officials will not require additional information of the person leaving the baby.

After the baby is examined, the DCS takes the baby into custody.

"We cannot emphasize enough that Indiana's Safe Haven law provides a safe choice for anyone who is in crisis and unable to care for a newborn child," Curry said in a statement.

Call Star reporter Justin L. Mack at (317) 444-6138. Follow him on Twitter: @justinlmack.