Livingston

A Columbia County woman is charged with second-degree murder after her newborn was discovered in a trash bin outside a town of Livingston convenience store.

After giving birth to the boy early Friday, Tara J. Tomlin, 20, of Livingston, placed the child in a plastic bag and threw the bag into a trash bin, according to a felony complaint.

The boy's cause of death was determined to be homicide by asphyxiation, according to an autopsy Friday by pathologist Jeffrey Hubbard at St. Peter's Hospital in Albany.

Tomlin was arraigned Saturday in Livingston Town Court by Justice Robert Moore and jailed without bail, according to State Police and the Columbia County District Attorney's Office, which conducted the investigation.

The discovery was the result of information that came to State Police over the course of Friday morning. Police first received a phone call around 3:40 a.m. from a citizen who said he suspected the presence of a baby outside the Bells Pond Xtra-Mart. Troopers arrived at 3:52 a.m. but couldn't find any child.

Police received more information later that morning that led them to the baby. EMTs from Greenport Rescue squad determined the infant was dead.

Tomlin allegedly gave birth inside the convenience store, where she worked, according what authorities told The Daily Freeman of Kingston.

Anyone with additional information surrounding the events is asked to contact State Police at 518-851-3111.

bbump@timesunion.com • 518-454-5387 • @bethanybump