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Nonprofit urges continued support for Tennessee safe-haven program; reports 11 surrenders in 2025
Summary
Julie Scruggs of A Secret Safe Place for Newborns told the committee the nonprofit trained and equipped hundreds of facilities and confirmed 147 statewide surrenders since 2001; she reported 11 surrenders in 2025 and outlined outreach and education efforts under Tennessee's safe-haven law.
Julie Scruggs, executive director of A Secret Safe Place for Newborns of Tennessee, described the nonprofit's statewide education and facility-equipping work to support Tennessee's safe-haven law. "The secret safe place for newborns of Tennessee is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to end newborn abandonment by educating all Tennesseans on safe secret options under the Tennessee safe haven law," she said, and she noted the organization confirms surrender data with the Department of Children's Services.
Scruggs said there have been 147 newborn surrenders in Tennessee since the law's enactment in 2001 and 11 surrenders in 2025 alone. Senators asked about where surrenders occur and whether baby-box devices or hospital handoffs are most common; Scruggs said surrenders are increasingly occurring at hospitals and the nonprofit is working to equip and educate facilities statewide. Several members thanked the witnesses for the work and emphasized the goal of preventing abandonment through safe options and public education.
