Young Writers Society

Jan. 18, 2005 — Authorities in San Francisco are baffled by the case of an unidentified little boy found in a city playground.

The boy — who social workers said does not know his name or where he is from — has been in protective custody since he was found in the North Beach section of the city in October, according to ABC affiliate KGO. They believe he is about 3 ½ years old and is developmentally delayed with speech problems.

The mystery surrounding the boy began Oct. 22 when police found him at a park with a woman they said was behaving erratically. Officers took her to San Francisco General Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.

The woman was eventually released and was told to appear in court several days later to claim her son, KGO reported. But she never showed up, and because she provided false names for her and the boy, authorities have no way to track her down.

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, San Francisco police and local social services officials are looking for his parents. Authorities received a court order Friday to release his image to the public in the hope someone will recognize and identify him.

"This case is somewhat odd because we really don't know the facts," said Georgia Hilgeman-Hammond, executive director of the national group Vanished Children's Alliance. "We don't know if this is, in fact, the mother of the child or if something happened to the mother of the child and that's why she didn't show to the court hearing."

Hilgeman-Hammond said the best hope for identifying the child is if someone recognizes his picture. Social workers told KGO they have shown the photo to people around North Beach, so far with no luck.

Hilgeman-Hammond said it is important to get to the bottom of the mystery as soon as possible as such trauma can have lasting effects.

"These young ages are the time when personalities are being formed, so these things have a tremendous impact," she told KGO.