This is a very hard discussion topic. If a person commits a crime then they shouldn’t be able to use their baby as a “Get out of Jail” free card, but this poor baby didn’t ask to be born under these conditions. I think that pregnant inmates should receive proper medical treatment during their pregnancy. They should be able to attend regular check-ups and have someone by their side when the baby is born. No one deserves to be alone during that process. The mothers should be able to meet with their family and make arrangements for the child if possible. These children are going to have a hard life either way but maybe having someone there to ease the mother during the process will make it a little better. It’s sad how many children are actually born behind bars each year. I think that in cases where the mother is serving a short sentence there should be some sort of in-house daycare. The mother can have time to bond with the child and give them the care they deserve in those first few months of their life. Putting a child in the foster system just because their parent made a mistake should not be the answer unless there are no other options. Foster care can be a horrible experience for the child and if the mother is serving a short sentence they will never remember their time spent in prison. Having the baby there could even give the mother a reason to want to do better once she is released. Taking her child may only make things worse on the inside and on the outside once she gets out. Things have to change with this process and at some point the system has to look at what these sentences do to the families that get left behind.
