Sean McDonnell was just hours old when They abandoned him in a garbage dump from Arlington Heights, a Chicago suburb, in 1983. In the cold, her weak cries alerted a couple passing by. Forty years after surviving that tragic beginning, he seeks justice and answers about his origins.
“I want to know why they left me like this. “Was I a burden to anyone?” he said in a recent interview with CBS Chicago.
Bruce and Terri McDonnell, who found him in the dumpster, heard what they thought was a cat’s meow. However, as you get closer, They discovered a baby wrapped in a towel, still with the umbilical cord.
“You don’t expect to find a newborn in the trash,” recalled Bruce, who quickly called an ambulance. Sean was taken to the hospital with symptoms of hypothermia, he survived thanks to the quick action of the couple, who later adopted him and gave him a new life.
At 41 years old, Sean returned to the place where he almost died and remembered that, if he had not been found, that day was “Garbage Monday,” which meant he would probably have ended up in a landfill. This closeness to death left a deep mark on his life. and drives him to look for those responsible for his abandonment.
Sean found out that he was adopted when he was five years old, but it was not until he was 34 that he learned the details of his traumatic origin. His adoptive mother, Terri, compiled a book for him with pictures and newspaper clippings that told his story.. That’s when Sean decided to do more research on his biological parents. He used DNA testing and discovered that his parents were not scared teenagers, as he had imagined, but adults in their 30s: his father was a postman and his mother, a police operator.
The surprise did not end there. He discovered that he had a half brotherborn a year before him, who was safely given up for adoption. Furthermore, his biological parents, after abandoning him, got married and had two more daughters. “They have to be held accountable,” demanded Sean, who tried unsuccessfully to contact them. They warned her that if she continued to seek answers, harassment charges could be filed.
In 2019, Sean went to Arlington Heights police to press charges against his biological parents for attempted murder, but was informed that Due to the time that had elapsed, the crime had prescribed. To his surprise, the police had also destroyed all evidence in the case, including the yellow towel he was found with. “It’s like I’m in that dump again,” he expressed, deeply frustrated.
Sean decided to file a civil suit seeking a court order that allows for official DNA testing, in the hope of holding those who abandoned him accountable. For him, the fact that the charges have expired is an injustice, since, if he had died, it would have been considered a murder, a crime without a statute of limitations.
His adoptive mother compiled a book for him with images and newspaper clippings that told his story (YouTube)
As he continues his fight, Sean found support in the Save Abandoned Babies foundation, which works to prevent cases like his through Illinois safe haven lawwhich allows parents to safely and anonymously drop off their babies at hospitals, police and fire stations to prevent tragedies.
Sean McDonnell ccontinues his search for justice, not only for him, but also for his story to be a warning about the consequences of abandoning a child.
