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| "Between the cells" (Photo by quiddle) |
Guerrero was told she was not in labor, placed in “the cage,” a solitary cell that was dirty and had nothing but a mat, and told to take deep breaths. Detention officers continued to ignore her obvious labor, laughing at her distress.
By Crystal Shepeard
Nicole Guerrero is one of the more than 200,000 women currently incarcerated due to minor drug offenses and property crimes. Like many of these women, Guerrero was pregnant when she was sent to jail. Delivering a baby in prison is traumatic and can include being handcuffed and shackled during labor and delivery.
Guerrero’s experience was downright horrific.
On June 2, 2012, Nicole Guerrero was arrested for drug possession by police in Wichita Falls, Texas. Nine days later, she was seen by an OB/GYN and informed that she was 34 weeks pregnant. After a checkup that consisted of measuring her stomach and listening to the baby’s heartbeat, she was told the baby was fine, given iron pills and a prescription to treat a vaginal infection.
What happened over twelve hours the following week has resulted in a lawsuit against Wichita County, the sheriff, a private prison healthcare firm, and a nurse with an expired license.
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