Concealing a birth is the act of a parent (or other responsible person) failing to report the birth of a child. The term is sometimes used to refer to hiding the birth of a child from friends or family, but is most often used when the appropriate authorities have not been informed about a stillbirth or the death of a newborn. This is a crime in many countries, with varying punishments. In the UK the applicable law is the Offences against the Person Act of 1861, which gives the penalty of (up to) two years imprisonment. A birth is sometimes concealed when there is a violation of the one-child policy in the People's Republic of China.
Notable cases
In 1785 Hannah Piggen from Massachusetts was the last person to be given the death sentence in the United States for concealing the birth/death of an infant.
