Mother uses infant to panhandle in scorching sun, sparks fears for baby's health

A Sacramento panhandler exposes her newborn child to the heat and danger of the streets

Outraged residents of Citrus Heights are in an uproar over a panhandler who is out on their streets with a newborn baby in tow, reported CBS.

The woman has been begging for money with the baby in her arms, out in the sweltering heat for hours at a time.

An Orangevale man who didn’t want to be identified explained that it was 101 degrees, and he felt the baby was in danger.

Passersby who have seen her begging for money in the hot sun and carrying a newborn baby have been contacting the authorities.

“It’s not unlawful to take a child out in public.”

Citrus Heights Police Sgt. Kris Frey, CBS., 16th of July 2018.

The Orangevale man thought the baby was fake, a prop to try and get more money from sympathetic passers-by then he realized it was a real infant.

The man ran into the woman at a Safeway shopping center in Orangevale last week. He says the baby was dressed in winter clothing and appeared to be flushed and lethargic.

In Folsom, a shopper addressed the woman and recorded the interaction.

Read more about social issues on our Twitter account @amomama_usa.

The shopper told her that she didn't think it was safe to be out on the streets with a newborn baby, and the panhandler responded that she was homeless.

Witnesses saw her drive away in a white van, which is registered to an unknown Folsom address.

The car's registration number was given to the police, who explained that unless the baby is examined and found to be suffering from the effects of exposure, the woman cannot be charged with child endangerment.

This is not the first incident of a mother panhandling with a tiny baby. In July 2017. Megan Doudney, homeless and the mother of a six-week-old child, was seen panhandling in San Francisco in the boiling heat of the California summer.

She was subjected to a welfare check when a passer-by called the SFPD because she saw that the baby was pale and lethargic.