MADISON HEIGHTS, Mich. – Call it fate, luck, or being at the right place at the right time, as a man discovered two young children abandoned behind a high school in Madison Heights.
The children were discovered near a back entrance at Lamphere High School around 1 p.m. Saturday (July 15). Madison Heights Police Department confirmed that there was a note found with the infants.
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LHS is a meeting location for Official Driving School. Before swapping students for a segment one session, instructor John Belyea and a student were planning to go inside for a bathroom break.
“When I came over here (toward the entrance), I’m listening, and it’s a weird noise like two cats fighting,” said Belyea. “Something’s wrong. So I started making loud noise to scare them off, and I’m like, wait a minute, that’s not cats. I’m thinking, ‘That sounds like a baby.’ I didn’t see anything, so I walked over where I heard the noise from around the wall where the two infants were at.”
Belyea said the smallest child was in a car seat with a cover and blanket, and the other child looked to be around 1 year old. Police later confirmed the child is 2 years old.
“The one that was screaming, I want to say, kind of saved her brother, sister, or whoever because if I didn’t hear that noise, I don’t go over around here and see them,” Belyea said. “I know whoever did this had to be in a bad situation, and I also feel bad for the young kids. I don’t know how long they were there for.”
There are safe haven laws where children born within 72 hours can be dropped off at designated locations like hospitals, police and fire departments.
For families going through tough situations, United Way has a Michigan resource database for anything from diapers to food and rental assistance. Click here to access the database here.