Mother of abandoned baby gets up to 10 years

Kim Smith

Wednesday, April 10, 2002 | 9:23 a.m.

A Las Vegas woman arrested last year after abandoning her newborn daughter in a trash bin begged District Judge Jeffrey Sobel Tuesday for the chance to prove she's not a "bad person."

"I didn't intend to hurt her at all," Monique Tucker, 28, sobbed. "I never had problems with my other children. I'm sorry for what I did."

Sobel said that although he had sympathy for Tucker, he thought her plea agreement gave her enough of a break.

Sobel sentenced her to two to 10 years for the attempted murder of baby Faith, who now lives with her paternal grandmother and three siblings in Colorado.

None of Tucker's family members were in the courtroom.

Attempted murder traditionally carries a two- to 20-year prison sentence, but Chief Deputy District Attorney Vicki Monroe and Deputy Public Defender Robert Thompson agreed ahead of time that Tucker would face no more than 10 years.

Authorities believe Tucker gave birth to the healthy girl in her bathroom on Aug. 6. She then wrapped the baby in a plastic bag and placed her in a shoebox, they say. She discarded the shoebox in a trash bin at her Charleston Boulevard apartment complex.

A groundskeeper at the complex found the baby. Tucker was arrested when another resident reported seeing blood on the back of Tucker's legs.

In asking for the prison sentence, Monroe noted Tucker was aware of the Baby Safe Haven law that went into effect last May.

The law allows a parent to abandon an unwanted infant at places such as hospitals or police and fire stations. It requires that a baby be handed over to an emergency services provider or placed somewhere safe on the property where it can be found. The baby must be less than 30 days old and in good health.