Thursday, June 04, 2009
Last month, New York legislators passed legislation to end the practice of shackling imprisoned women during labor and childbirth. If signed into law by Governor David Paterson, New York would join California and Illinois in being the only states to ban this practice. The 47 other states have still not addressed the issue with legislation, and 23 have regulations expressly allowing the use of restraints during labor and childbirth.
The practice of shackling during labor and childbirth involves the woman’s ankle(s), wrist(s), or both being shackled to her hospital bed. Shackling is often carried out regardless of whether or not an inmate has a history of violence or has ever attempted to escape.
It is estimated that that 6% of women admitted to local jails and 5% of those admitted to state prisons are pregnant, and that about 2,000 babies are born inside detention facilities every year in the United States.
Women who have experienced shackling claim that it makes labor and childbirth more excruciating and they are often unable to adjust themselves into more comfortable positions. Some even claim to have had their legs shackled together, thus complicating the procedure by being unable to have their feet put in stirrups and making it impossible to remove the lower part of the hospital bed for easier delivery.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) has taken the position that “physical restraints interfere with the physician’s ability to safely practice medicine by reducing their ability to assess and evaluate the physical condition of the mother and the fetus…thus, overall putting the lives of women and unborn children at risk.”
-Kyle Kuersten
Giving Birth in Shackles (by Meghan Rhoad, Human Rights Watch)
Giving Birth in Shackles: A Constitutional and Human Rights Violation (by Dana L. Sichel, Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law)) (PDF)
Prisons Often Shackle Pregnant Inmates in Labor ( Adam Liptak, New York Times)
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