OMAHA, Neb. (WOWT) - On this day in 2008, a change was made to Nebraska’s new and controversial Safe Haven law .

State lawmakers had passed Safe Haven legislation to provide parents with a safe way to surrender a newborn they felt they could not care for.

However, because of how the law was written, it allowed parents and guardians to leave children up to 18 years old at state hospitals without the fear of prosecution.

The Nebraska Historical Society says three dozen children were surrendered over about four months.

Feeling the law was being abused, Governor Dave Heineman signed an amendment only allowing infants up to 30 days old to be surrendered.

The law was expanded in 2024 to include infants up to 90 days old and adds fire and police stations to the list of spots where parents

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