Provides for the custody of pregnant female inmates before, during and after delivery

Justification

All pregnant women who are within the state's custody deserve the opportunity to deliver their babies safely, no matter the mother's legal status. Childbirth is a precious and also precarious moment in a woman's life, and in the life of the newborn. This bill, if enacted, will make childbirth safer for the few women who have their baby while they are incarcerated.

Physical restraints, according to obstetricians, put the health of a childbearing mother and her infant at risk. The practice is dangerous even before the delivery commences, as pregnant women who are deep into the third trimester often have problems maintaining their balance. Shackling the ankles of these women heightens the risk that they will fall forward, potentially injuring them and their fetuses. During labor, physical restraints interfere with the ability of physicians to assess and evaluate the physical condition of the mother and the fetus. Further, women undergoing childbirth need to be able to shift positions, an impossibility if shackled at the ankle and wrist. That inability to adjust positions also creates cramps and intense pain. Finally, if there is a need for a C-Section, the mother would have to be moved to an operating room immediately, which is difficult to accomplish when the woman is bound by mechanical restraints. A delay of even a few minutes could result in permanent brain damage for the baby.

These dangers are almost always avoidable, because it is seldom necessary to shackle a woman in labor. Women who are giving birth experience excruciating labor pains and are often highly medicated, therefore eliminating any serious security risk. Even if a woman in active labor did attempt to escape, it is unlikely that she could get very far. As the bill provides, a woman who is likely to hurt herself or others, or is likely to attempt an escape, may be restrained at the wrist. In all other situations, a correction officer's supervision is sufficient to preserve security.

Indeed, New York City's Department of Corrections has not reported any escapes or security breaches as a result of a 1990 policy change which required, as this bill does, that restraints be employed only after a case-by-case determination. Nor have there been any breaches of security in Illinois, California or Vermont, which all adopted a similar measure during the past decade.

In May 2009 the Bureau of Prisons barred the shackling of pregnant federal prisoners except in extreme situations. The federal policy change represents a significant victory for thousands of women across the nation in federal prison. Now is the time to extend that same protection to the nearly three thousand New York women who are in jail or in prison.

Prior legislative history

2007-2008: A.4105 2005-2006: A.3804 2003-2004: A.5134 2001-2002: A.3292 2000: A.10807

Fiscal implications for state and local governments

No fiscal implication to the state.

Effective date

This act shall take effect immediately.