A Washington County woman is has now been charged with murdering her newborn child.
Sheriff Thomas Smith says 24-year-old Jessica Ballard was arrested this afternoon and is now in the Washington County jail.
He said Ballard was pregnant, gave birth late Saturday or Sunday and left the child in woods off Highway 15. Then she drove herself to an emergency room. The newborn's body was found dead around 3 a.m. Sunday. It was sent to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation crime lab in Atlanta for an autopsy.
"It's a sad day, and I've been in law since 1985, and it's the worst case I've seen so far, because of a child having to suffer when so many people that can't have children would be glad to have that child," Smith said.
Yesterday, Ballard was charged with child cruelty and making false statements to investigators. She was also suspended without pay from her job at the Boys and Girls Club.
