Officers turned a five-month-old child over to protective services after a concerned encampment resident contacted police on May 30th and said the child was in danger.
Police responded to an unsanctioned encampment in the 900 block of Poplar Place South around 9 pm on May 30th, where they learned residents of a tent were reportedly using methamphetamine and that the young child living in the encampment was not being properly cared for.
A resident of the encampment facilitated the child being turned over to police, and officers called for Seattle Fire Department medics to examine the child, who was later taken to Children’s Hospital and turned over to Child Protective Services.
City workers and the SPD Navigation Team had visited the same unsanctioned encampment on multiple occasions prior to this incident and found numerous issues regarding impacts to public right of way and hazards from moving vehicles, trash and human waste. The encampment was removed on June 14th and 15th.
Detectives are currently conducting a child neglect investigation.