Worst fears come true with Neb. safe haven law

Experts disagree on safe haven laws
Sen. Ernie Chambers, who cast the lone vote against the law, said Friday that lawmakers will be forced to revisit a bad bill.

“I knew it would have broad results, and they would have to come back and readdress the issue,” he said.

Nebraska was the last state to adopt a safe-haven law. Most other states have focused their laws on protecting infants.

For years, child-welfare experts have disagreed about whether safe-haven laws reduce the total number of abandoned children.

Adam Pertman, executive director of the Evan B. Donaldson Adoption Institute and an opponent of safe-haven laws, said he’s never seen anything like what’s happening in Nebraska.

“What we’re seeing is the unfolding of a policy that wasn’t well thought-out,” he said.

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