Woman who abandoned baby at VIA park-and-ride bathroom sentenced to 15 years behind bars

Roseanne Welch pleaded no contest to injury to child

SAN ANTONIO – A judge sentenced Rosanne Welch to 15 years behind bars on Tuesday after she left her newborn son at a VIA park-and-ride bathroom nearly two years ago.

Welch was arrested after the public recognized her from surveillance video.

An arrest affidavit obtained by KSAT 12 News suggested Welch was untruthful when first questioned about the baby by a Child Protective Services worker, saying "she had no knowledge of being pregnant." During the same interview, Welch later admitted she "gave birth and saw movement from the newborn."

READ THE ORIGINAL REPORT: Premature baby found alive in Park and Ride bathroom 

Welch also said her ex-boyfriend came to the scene and helped her cut the umbilical cord, but the video evidence only showed Welch and two other women enter the bathroom, according to the affidavit.

One woman told investigators she heard a woman moaning and screaming, the other woman found the baby moments after Welch was seen leaving the bathroom and getting on a bus.

Under questioning, Welch's ex-boyfriend admitted he talked to her on the phone in the days leading up to the birth, stating "she told him she was pregnant with his baby but that her current boyfriend was going to raise the baby," according to the affidavit.

The newborn, believed to have been born six week premature, was found at the VIA park-and-ride in the 9400 Interstate 35.

The baby was fighting for his life in the weeks after he was discovered.

Records from Judson ISD confirmed Welch suffers from a mental illness worded as "mental retardation" in her files.

Continuing coverage on KSAT.com

Premature baby found alive in Park and Ride bathroom 

SAPD: Baby John Doe on ventilator, improving, still day to day 

Police release photos of 'person of interest' connected to baby left in VIA bathroom toilet 

SAPD: Few clues available regarding newborn abandoned at VIA Park and Ride 

Arrest made in case of baby abandoned in VIA park-and-ride bathroom 

Mom may not face jail time for abandoning newborn 

Judson ISD records confirm birth mother's intellectual disability 


About the Authors:

Garrett Brnger is a reporter with KSAT 12.

Reporter, proud Houstonian, U of H alumni, and lover of all the hometown sport teams.