babies in prison

[Lexasmom04]

I was watching "Im pregnant and...." on  TLC ( it was old, but I never saw it.) This episode was "Im pregnant and.....in prison"

The particular woman was in prison for drug charges. After giving birth she had 16 months left on her sentence. She was accepted into the nursery unit and chose to have the baby stay in prison with her.

Her mother had custody of her 10yr old daughter, and wanted custody of the baby too. She thought the baby deserved to be around its sister and live like a normal child. The baby was innocent and should not  be living in prison.

The nursery unit seemed a lot nicer then the average cell. Women got to have a bed and a crib, lockers for the baby and themselves, and more privacy then other inmates. They did their own laundry. Got to "shop" for baby clothes. Inside her unit I saw cartoon character stickers on the wall, the crib had a mobile and one of those ocean wonder music boxes.

I thought this was interesting and wanted to see what others thought. Is it fair to the babies to have to stay imprisoned with mom? (Especially considering this woman had her mother who wanted to care for the baby) Or does establishing that bond outweigh anything else?

Do you think the moms do this to gain more freedoms....a bit of a more cushy stay?

[Lexasmom04]

bump

[CoeyG]

 Since I don't know any moms in prison, or pregnant women in prison I really can't say.  I am sure though that there are those who are looking for a cushy stay, who if were on the outside would be doing exactlythe thing that got them there.  However not every woman in prison is a "hardened criminal" and I'm sure wants to be with her baby.

[babyfat5]

I think a lot has to depend on the crime and level of violence the baby would be exposed to. I'm all for keeping the mom and baby together but the safety of the child must be first and foremost. It is better than floating the kid around the foster care system in most cases or handing them off to family that might not be that great.