Woman charged for allegedly trying to flush newborn down McDonald's toilet

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Prosecutors have charged a 20-year-old woman with first-degree assault for allegedly trying to flush her newborn son down the toilet at a McDonald's restaurant after giving birth in the restroom.

Ashley Woods of Kansas City was charged Thursday in Jackson County Circuit Court. She later turned herself in to police.

On Aug. 27, employees at McDonald's called 911 after discovering Woods in the bathroom, bleeding.

According to court documents, Woods, who worked at the restaurant, hid the newborn with toilet paper and flushed twice. Court documents say Woods told police that she "didn't want the baby then."

The baby boy was estimated to have been born after 32 weeks of gestation. He survived and is in foster care.

At the time of the birth, Woods told paramedics she didn't know that she was pregnant or that she had just given birth, court documents say. But she told police this week that she had known she was pregnant since July.