The Council Bluffs teen abandoned at an Omaha hospital Tuesday under Nebraska's Safe Haven Law has been reunited with her family.

Her grandparents dropped her off at Creighton University Medical Center saying they couldn't care for her any longer. That story has since changed.

Nebraska Health and Human Services director Todd Landry said Thursday the grandparents admitted they dropped the girl off to teach her a lesson.

After examining a number of factors, Douglas County decided reunification was the best option for everyone involved.

Chief Deputy Douglas County Attorney Brenda Beadle tells Channel 6 News the decision was reached after examining a number of factors. Because the girl and her grandparents live in Council Bluffs, both state Child Protective Services were contacted by Nebraska officials.

It was determined, according to Beadle, that filing with the Douglas County Juvenile Court was not the best course of action and that the child is not in any danger.

"We looked at the child's situation in general in terms of any risk of harm that posed itself to the child if returned to the parental care, so really looked at more than the isolated incident of the use of the Safe Haven Law,” says Douglas County Deputy Attorney Nicole Brundo Goaley.

Iowa state officials are stepping in to make sure the family is getting the assistance it needs and will continue to monitor the situation.

There have already been 16 kids dropped off by parents, grandparents or guardians under the Safe Haven Law. Other states average one to three infants per year.

The 14-year-old Council Bluffs girl was the first from out of state left in Nebraska and it may not be the last time someone comes in from out of state to use Nebraska's Safe Haven Law.

The statute covers everyone who wants to drop off a child of any age. Everyone Channel 6 News has talked to says they expect more kids brought to Nebraska to be dropped off, from Iowa, Kansas and Colorado.

Perhaps the best know of Nebraska's Safe Haven cases is the Staton saga that continues to attract attention simply because of the number of children involved. Seven are still with an aunt in Lincoln. The Juvenile Court case remains frozen until the Appellate Court hears several motions.

When legislators passed the broad bill, few expected this many problems, but local hospitals did expect some trouble and planned for it.

"We did anticipate that there could be adolescents and older children and not just infants, so our policy from the beginning was set up to handle a child of any age,” says Cindy Owen with the Nebraska Medical Center.

All hospitals have procedures in place when a child is dropped off under the Safe Haven Law. The first is to try and get the child's name and any medical history the person dropping them off will provide.

The child is then taken to the emergency room to be examined and police and child protective services are called. The county attorney then starts the Juvenile Court process to place the child.

While Nebraska Gov. Heineman has been reluctant to call a special session to resolve the controversy surrounding the Safe Haven Law, lawmakers are proceeding with their own investigation. A public hearing has been scheduled for November 13th.

Sen. Gwen Howard of Omaha co-sponsored the Safe Haven Act. She hopes a special session isn’t necessary. "This joint hearing will be November 13th. We're only a month-and-a-half away from the Legislature convening. That's in January. So I'm hopeful that we don't have to have a special session, that we can deal with this effectively come January."

A complete copy of the bill adopted by the Nebraska Legislature follows:

Legislative Bill 157 - Final Reading
Introduced by Stuthman, 22; Adams, 24; Ashford, 20; Carlson, 38;
Christensen, 44; Fischer, 43; Fulton, 29; Gay, 14;
Hansen, 42; Howard, 9; Johnson, 37; Lautenbaugh, 18;
McDonald, 41; Nantkes, 46; Pahls, 31; Pankonin, 2;
Pirsch, 4; Wallman, 30.

Read first time January 8, 2007

Committee: Judiciary

A BILL FOR AN ACT relating to children; to prohibit prosecution for
leaving a child at a hospital; and to provide a duty for the hospital.
Be it enacted by the people of the State of Nebraska,

LB 157
Section 1. No person shall be prosecuted 1 for any crime
based solely upon the act of leaving a child in the custody of an
employee on duty at a hospital licensed by the State of Nebraska.
The hospital shall promptly contact appropriate authorities to take
custody of the child.