By APRIL MIDDLETON

Salina Journal

McPHERSON -- Police on Wednesday said they expect the mother of the infant discovered in a trash Dumpster to be charged in connection with the incident, but the 18-year-old's father said she "was not in her right mind."

"She was an excellent mom. She loves that baby with all her heart," said Kenneth Harman, the woman's father and grandfather to the infant girl.

Harman declined to reveal the mother's name. Police said they will not release her name until formal charges are filed.

Harman said his daughter has had mental health issues since she was young, he said. At one time, she managed her bipolar disorder well with medication. However, she hadn't been taking the medication regularly since she became pregnant and had the baby.

"You know, she said it made her sleepy, and she felt like it hindered her ability to take care of her daughter," said Harman, McPherson.

The woman and her child were living with a great aunt and uncle in McPherson, and Harman lives in town, too. There never was an indication that anything was wrong, Harman said.

"This is my first granddaughter. I love her," Harman said. "If I would have seen anything that suggested she wasn't being cared for right, I would have thrown a fit. Any grandpa would act the same way."

Police, though, think the 18-year-old mother was responsible for placing the 6-week-old infant in a Dumpster Tuesday morning.

Police have forwarded information to the prosecutor, but formal charges have not been filed, said McPherson Police Chief Dennis Shaw.

The woman was placed in a mental health treatment facility. Shaw said he expects her to be charged with aggravated endangerment of a child.

A spokeswoman at the McPherson County Attorney's Office would only say the case remains under investigation.

The baby was discovered about 1 p.m. Tuesday on some plastic bags in a Dumpster a few blocks from her home. She appeared to be fine, but she was taken to Memorial Hospital in McPherson. The hospital planned to keep the infant for at least 48 hours, Shaw said.

Police began searching for the infant after her mother called 911 at 10:13 a.m. Tuesday to report that the baby had been abducted.

The mother initially put police on the trail of a family member, Shaw said. That report was found to be false.

"Things are sketchy, but we think we can prove that she went for walk in the area just before the baby went missing. We found tire tracks and we found the stroller in the alley," Shaw said.

Shaw said the mother's motive is unclear.

"It may be that she thought someone was coming to take the baby and was going to hide the baby," Shaw said. "We don't know all the details."

Harman said he can't say if that's the case, but he knows his daughter "was not in her right mind."

"Last night, I was sitting here trying to picture the whole thing. I was finally able to get through the part in my mind of her putting the baby in the Dumpster, but I couldn't imagine her shutting the lid and walking away," Harman said. "I feel that her hands and body might have done this, but she wasn't in her right mind."

Police had been to the woman's home on more than one occasion to check the welfare of the baby after receiving phone calls from people expressing concern. One such check was conducted at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Shaw said most of those calls were made anonymously. Some of the calls are believed to have been made by the same family member the mother accused of abducting the child, Shaw said.

"We know there may have been some things going on with the family," Shaw said. "But when we did respond to those calls, the child was OK and in good health."

Harman said he wonders now if at least some of those calls might have been placed by his daughter.

"I don't know, but I wonder if she might have made those calls as a cry out for some help. Maybe we missed some signs," he said.

Harman said some "very influential" family members were successful in putting some doubt in his daughter's head about her ability to raise a child. Those family members also had threatened to take the child from her, he said.

"I tried to encourage her a lot and tell her she was doing a great job," Harman said. "She never seemed overwhelmed. She was like any new mom. Some days were difficult, but things were OK."

Shaw said the infant likely will be placed in state custody following her release from the hospital until a ruling is made on her permanent placement.

Harman said he hasn't seen or talked to his daughter and hasn't thought too much about what will happen next.

"I'm taking it one day at a time," Harman said. "We want to keep the baby in the family. That's absolutely the goal.

"And regardless of what happens, my daughter has our support, too. When someone makes a mistake, we don't exile them. They are family. We all make mistakes and when we do, we need each other even more."

nReporter April Middleton can be reached at 822-1498 or by e-mail at amiddleton@salina.com.