Florida woman gives birth, leaves baby outside under bucket

MIAMI -- (WBBH/WTVJ) -- A Homestead woman is facing charges after police say she gave birth to a premature baby then left it alone outside under a bucket.

Martha Estella Godinez-Diaz, 20, was arrested Monday on charges including child abuse and child neglect, according to an arrest report.

The report said Godinez-Diaz gave birth to the child last Wednesday at a home in the 1700 block of Northeast 1st Terrace. She was outside the home and alone when she gave birth to the girl, who was premature and born at between 31 to 33 weeks old, the report said.

Godinez-Diaz's boyfriend said she had never received prenatal care, and she had contacted him saying she was suffering from stomach pain. When the boyfriend and his family members arrived, Godinez-Diaz said she wasn't having any more pain but one family member noticed her abdomen had changed in size, the report said.

The boyfriend's father searched and found the baby near a shed. She was found with a potting plant bucket on top of her and the boyfriend's father saw her feet moving, the report said.

When Miami-Dade Fire Rescue workers arrived the baby was found wrapped in a blue blanket and had dirt and leaves on her body, the report said. Godinez-Diaz told officers she suffers from memory loss following a car accident in April, the report said.

"The offender made no intention of seeking help for the child. The child was disregarded in the backyard and was concealed by a bucket," the report noted.

The baby was hospitalized and suffers from a "genetic malformation of the brain," the report said. Officials with the Florida Department of Children and Families say they have opened an investigation on the case.

Godinez-Diaz was booked into jail where she remained without bond Tuesday, records showed. Attorney information wasn't available.