Woman charged with abandoning baby in Lower Mills trash barrel after giving birth

A Milton woman was arraigned today on charges of attempted murder and reckless endangerment of a child for the way prosecutors say she abandoned her newborn son in a trash barrel outside Pat's Pizza a few doors down and not long after she gave birth to him, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports.

Marie Merisier, 33, was ordered held in lieu of $100,000 bail, the DA's office reports. Should she make bail, she will have to stay at home under GPS monitoring.

Prosecutors say Merisier gave birth at an apartment a few doors down from Pat's on Friday. WCVB reports the apartment belongs to an acquaintance, who said Merisier spent about an hour in the bathroom, that he heard a baby crying and that Merisier then left carrying a leather bag.

According to the DA's office:

As she prepared to leave the apartment, a resident heard the newborn crying inside Ms. Merisier’s leather bag and asked if she required an ambulance. She allegedly declined. The individual called 911 after Ms. Merisier left.

After leaving the apartment, Ms. Merisier was captured by a security camera as she removed something from her bag and placed it in a trash barrel outside a Dorchester Avenue restaurant. A passerby heard a baby crying inside the trash bin and flagged down a nearby ambulance for help. EMS workers recovered a knotted plastic bag with the newborn inside. The newborn was transported to an area hospital. Ms. Merisier was also taken to a hospital.

The DA's office reports the newborn is doing fine. In a statement, DA Rachael Rollins said:

As District Attorney, as a mother and auntie, and as a licensed emergency foster care provider, my focus immediately went to the safety and wellbeing of this newborn. I had the opportunity to briefly visit the baby on Saturday and was so happy to see nurses pampering, spoiling, and singing to, feeding and generally pouring love and affection into this beautiful child.

Rollins praised the bystanders who heard the baby crying and summoned help.

She continued that she could understand the "the amount of pain, fear, disassociation, or mental anguish one must be experiencing to engage in the behavior we alleged she did," but said women in a similar situation should know there is help available - in this case, the trash barrel is about a block from a fire station and Carney Hospital.

Rollins continued:

This situation did not have to happen. But we need to make sure that parents of newborns know they have options if they feel hopeless, depressed, an inability to bond, or are having thoughts of harm to themselves or the child. Nobody should ever suffer in silence, but no harm should ever come to any child either.

Innocent, etc.