Craigslist adoption ad: A plea by young mother-to-be? A scam?

Is it a scam, or an anxious young woman seeking a home for her baby?

That's the question Federal Way police are trying to answer as they trace the person who posted an ad on Craigslist offering an unborn child for adoption.

"Maybe she's just ignorant of the law, and we can point her in the right direction," police spokesman Raymond Bunk said.

The poster described herself as 22 years old and 5 months pregnant. She said she was looking for a wealthy couple to adopt the baby and pay her medical expenses.

Independent adoptions are legal in the state, and so is the practice of adoptive parents paying the birth mother's expenses. But under state law, only licensed agencies or the Department of Social and Health Services can advertise a child for adoption.

Adoptive parents must be screened by the state, a licensed agency or another qualified party. Once adoptive parents have passed the vetting process, they are allowed to advertise for a child.

Even if it were legal for a pregnant woman to offer up a child on her own, it's not a good idea, said Carol Mikkelsen, director of programs for Amara, a Seattle adoption agency. "You don't know who will respond," she said. "Also, we worry that the birthparents aren't going to get the services that they need."

The poster said she didn't want to have an abortion but that the father didn't want the child.

"It sounds like she was kind of taking the bull by the horns and trying to make her own adoption," said Shari Levine, executive director of Open Adoption & Family Services, with offices across the Northwest. "It's absolutely out of the ordinary, and there are many other routes for her to take."

In Washington, many single mothers can qualify for free medical care, Levine said.

That removes any obligation a birth mother may feel to potential adoptive parents who cover her expenses. And adoption agencies can present information on many adoptive families and let the birth mother choose the one she likes best, Levine said.

It's also possible the ad was a hoax or an attempt to scam money, Bunk pointed out:

"We don't know if she's in Federal Way or Zimbabwe."

The original ad suggested the woman lived in the Federal Way area. Another version was posted later and the location was given as the Seattle area.

Both ads were removed, apparently after being flagged as inappropriate.

Federal Way police were alerted to the ad on Tuesday, after someone reported it to another law-enforcement agency. Police are seeking a warrant to identify the source of the ad.

"We want to check on the welfare of the mother and unborn child," Bunk said.

A spokeswoman for Craigslist said in an e-mail that the Web site makes it easy to trace a person who posts ads for illegal activities.

"Craigslist is an unwise choice for criminal acts, since an electronic trail is inevitably created, which law enforcement can easily follow," wrote Susan MacTavish Best. "Perpetrators are quickly caught and are typically held fully accountable for their actions."

If the ad was legitimate, Mikkelsen said, she's concerned that the woman receive the type of free counseling and assistance offered by an adoption agency.

"Generally, those are nonjudgmental, unbiased services to help birthparents think through their options and ... help them understand the legal process," she said.

Many agencies also offer grief counseling for birth mothers who have given up their babies.

"It's a very hard decision, and much harder after you have the child."

Sandi Doughton: 206-464-2491 or sdoughton@seattletimes.com