Baby Born in Penn Station During Morning Rush Hour

by Susan Wagner (Subscribe to Susan Wagner's posts) Mar 19th 2009 1:00PM

Categories: Pregnancy & Birth, In The News

Commuters at New York City's Penn Station got a little extra excitement on their way to the train this morning: Expectant mom Marie Booth gave birth to a seven-pound baby boy under the Departures sign. Marie and her husband, Jonathon, were making their way from East Orange, N.J., to North Central Hospital in the Bronx when Marie realized she was in full-blown labor. "Forget the ambulance, forget everything else -- I'm going to have the baby right here," she remembered saying.

The baby was delivered by three members of the police department's counter-terrorism patrol team and an Amtrak employee. When the whole thing was over, commuters cheered. "They started yelling, 'Name him Penn, after Penn Station!'" said Marie Medina, one of the officers who helped in the delivery.

Marie and Jonathan went with their fellow train riders' wishes, naming their son Caesar Penn Boothe. Mom and baby are both reported to be doing fine.

And you thought your commute was rough this morning. Wow!

Do you have an unusual birth story? Tell us about it in the comments!

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Comments (27)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Angela 3-19-2009 @ 11:00PM

I'm sorry, but when are we ever going to start giving the mother all of the credit for delivering her own baby? When we say "The baby was delivered by three members of the police department's counter-terrorism patrol team and an Amtrak employee", it sounds like THEY were the ones pushing through contractions.

Put the power back where it belongs--with the women, not the police officer or Amtrak employee who stood there outstretched arms and watched the woman deliver her baby out.

susan 3-20-2009 @ 6:48AM

AMEN! it wasn't the doctors that were having the contractions w/ MY babies!

TLS 3-20-2009 @ 12:10PM

I am with you guys 100% but the term delivered comes from the doctor giving the baby to its mother after she gives birth. So the doctor or whom ever "delivers" the baby to his or her mother.

elaine 3-20-2009 @ 7:10AM

Last year my niece was on her way to Stonybrook hospital To have her third baby !Her husband, Scott was driving and got to Nicoles Rd And Middle country Rd.Rachael Yelled out you better stop I.m having the baby !! Scott thought she was kidding ,but she wasn"t.
Scott delivered the baby with a lot of help from Rachael And God.Lucy Nicole(after Nicoles Rd ) Hoffman.THey drove to the hospital and with Gods Help everything is perfect .She's A perfect child..

TXDoula 3-20-2009 @ 7:49AM

WOW...three officers delivered one baby! How in the world did they do that, are they co-joined triplets, hinged by a single uterus?? Let's call it like it is, the mom delivered that baby, the officers, like all primary care givers in birth, were simply "catchers". Well done mom!

mark 3-20-2009 @ 9:10AM

Obama's new health care plan...

Cheryl 3-20-2009 @ 5:15PM

Actually, this is the type of "health care" that evolved since Reagan and deteriorated thanks to the Republicans helping insurance companies and big business. In other words, health care exists only for the government employees, and the rich. Medical care is "doled out" at the whim of insurance companies who dictate what procedures you are permitted to have. If it were up to the insurance companies, they would demand their premiums and give NO benefits at all. As it stands right now, they only want to "insure" the healthy and keep their profits astronomical.

Louis Stamm 3-20-2009 @ 10:37AM

Jeez, with the negative posts regarding the birth at Penn Station I wonder why the news services even bother to print anything

the four haters commenting would problaly be the first to scream lawsuit if there had been no assistance--you three must have miserable lives and non-supportive families, I feel sorry for you, but it is the life you chose to stay with.

Congratulations to Mom, baby Caesear, the Father and thanks NYPD for being there to assist as needed

Paula 3-20-2009 @ 12:22PM

Thank you Louis. Some people seem to forget that "pushing" and contractions are natural and unstoppable and without some assistance, the outcome may have been different. Catch the baby, cut the cord, wrap the baby up in something warm. Lets see, that would take 3 people, far fewer than in a hospital delivery room.
Congratulations Mom and Dad and a big, fat thanks to all who contributed to a safe delivery.

Baffled 3-20-2009 @ 11:06AM

Yay for her, she got to avoid being strapped down to a bed with an unnecessary IV, possibly catheter, and nurses in and out probably pushing an epi on her. Congrats on the baby and to the one that said people were being negative by pointing out those officers didn't deliver that baby, they are right. The officers caught the baby, not pulled it out of her. But they still did a good job.

eboyd 3-20-2009 @ 11:10AM

Good grief. I clicked through from my feed reader hoping to see unique birth stories. Instead I got a whole lot of blah, blah, blah. Let's get back to the subject, folks! Thank you Elaine for your great story :)

Greg 3-20-2009 @ 11:39AM

I saw this on the news yesterday morning. It was truly something to smile and feel good about especially with all of the bad news being reported. Great job NYPD and Amtrak PD for helping mom deliver, great job mom for having a healthy baby and a big cheer for all those watching and who applauded the new addition to the family. Too often we would only hear about those complaining of being delayed heading off to work because of this.

TXDoula 3-20-2009 @ 11:45AM

Interesting, 5 women all understand that you can only deliver a baby if you have a uterus......one man is offended and calls us haters. I think he's just jealous that only we can deliver babies and all he can do is be a "catcher"....:) Poor thang

MSZARIA 3-20-2009 @ 1:25PM

I HOPE YOU REALLY AREN'T A DOULA. I HAVE 4 CHILDREN AND WOULDN'T HAVE WANTED SOMEONE LIKE YOU IN THE DELIVERY ROOM WITH ME. FOR ALL OF YOU OTHER NEGATIVE PEOPLE TRY LOOKING UP THE WORD DELIVER IN THE DICTIONARY. THAT WORD HAS SEVERAL DIFFERENT MEANINGS. ONE OF THEM BEIING TO ASSIST IN BRINGING FORTH YOUNG. WHICH IS WHAT I BELIEVE ACCORDING TO THE STORY IS WHAT HAPPENED. SPEND SOME TIME EXPLORING THE DICTIONARY AND DON'T BE SO NEGATIVE NEXT TIME. LIFE IS TOO SHORT TO BE A SOUR PUSS.

Commonsense 8-04-2009 @ 10:35AM

Seriously!
Way to make a man feel left out of the birthing process! Yes- it is true that the women is the one going through all the labor and over exaggerated pain ((I can say the because I gave birth 1st child w/no meds and it was totally fine) but don’t make it sound like a man is just there sitting around like an idiot ! Thank God I had a wonderful husband there supporting me (not a doula) giving me backrubs and making sure that I was as comfortable as possible.

I’m glad that everything went well with the mother and new baby in the train station!

Vanessa 3-20-2009 @ 12:12PM

This is a great story. The mother does deserve at least some of the credit. I'm just glad the mother and baby are doing okay.

Tari 3-20-2009 @ 1:06PM

Elaine- I'm very happy for your Niece and family. But I got a picture when you wrote "and with God's help....", so, while God was driving them to the hospital, he failed to notice 1,000,000 babies die in Darfur of starvation or genocide. That's one special kid ain't it? I have a problem with the overuse of the name God.

MSZARIA 3-20-2009 @ 1:26PM

DO YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THE OVER USE OF THE WORD GOD? OR DO YOU JUST NOT BELIEVE IN HIM? GOD IF YOU BELIEVE IN HIM, DID NOT CREATE THE PROBLEMS IN DAFUR, PEOPLE DID. HE DID HOWEVER CREATE MAN WITH A FREE WILL. THE PROBLEM IN DAFUR LIES WITH MAN NOT WITH GOD. HOWEVER, THANK GOD THAT HE IS THE ONE WITH INFINITE WISDOM INSTEAD OF YOU. MAYBE YOU SHOULD GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE TARI AND GO TO DAFUR YOURSELF AND SOLVE THE PROBLEM. OR MAYBE YOU CAN GIVE UP YOUR COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AND SEND THE MONEY SAVED TO DAFUR TO HELP THE CAUSE.

N 3-20-2009 @ 1:30PM

Jesus is my co-pilot?

Rev. Happyjack 3-20-2009 @ 1:32PM

One cannot over use the word GOD. As GOD is everything to everybody, including those who choose to ignore GOD.. It is in ROMANS chapter ONE, where GOD gave those, with VILE AFFECTIONS, over to their REPROBATE minds... How would You like for GOD to give up on YOU?

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