They knew her only as Baby Blue.A newborn girl whose body washed up in Ventnor 15 years ago didn't live long, but her death had a lasting affect on a Ventnor couple who raised money and awareness in her honor.Bill Ferrier found the body after opening a bag he found while walking on the Suffolk Avenue beach Jan. 17, 2004.The placenta and umbilical cord were still attached. Two other bags were nearby, presumably to weigh down the body.On the 15th anniversary of that tragic discovery, Prosecutor Damon Tyner announced that the case remains open and one that "is solvable for a variety of reasons.""We are optimistic that we will find the persons responsible for such a callous, irresponsible act towards a newborn child," Tyner said.Ferrier's wife, Susan, said she wasn't surprised the case remains open."It's a good thing," she told BreakingAC. "It would be nice to see justice."
The Ferriers started the Baby Blue Foundation to help get the girl a proper burial. But it grew into a movement that helped raise awareness of options like Safe Haven, which allows a baby to be left at a safe place with no criminal repercussions."These instances are not isolated to what happens to the mother and the child," Susan Ferrier said. "It affects everybody down the line. That's the shame of it all."That message really was learned when the parents of a local woman who went to prison after putting her newborn was found dead in an Atlantic City trash bin joined the foundation."Getting to know them is part of what raised my awareness to the fact that these things don't happen in a vacuum," Susan Ferrier said. "It's straight through the families. It's the friends. It's everybody and it's very sad."The foundation no longer exists. After the couple moved to Maryland in 2010, they tried to keep it going. Susan even made the drive to board meetings, but it was too much."On the upside, I don't hear much about these occurrences happening as much as I used to," she said. "I'd like to think maybe the work that we did with the Baby Blue Foundation had some effect."
Anyone with information can call the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office at 609-909-7800 or go to the Prosecutor's Office website and provide information by filling out the form anonymously on the Submit a Tip page. People can also call Crime Stoppers at 609-652-1234.
