NC governor signs law that bans shackling of incarcerated pregnant women
Gov. Roy Cooper signed into law Friday a bill that will add a layer of protection for incarcerated women who are pregnant.
House Bill 608 bans the use of handcuffs in most instances on pregnant women after they reach their second trimester. It also ensures that pregnant women and their babies have quality prenatal and postnatal care and that a baby is given time to bond with her mother at the prison or jail.
“This legislation takes important steps to protect women who are incarcerated during and after pregnancy and labor,” Cooper said in a statement.
Susanna Birdsong, North Carolina director of public affairs for Planned Parenthood South Atlantic, said in a written statement, “This victory belongs to the currently and formerly incarcerated people who have fought for this statewide change for many years while enduring cruel and dangerous conditions in our jails and prisons.”
Read more: https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article254144613.html
(Raleigh News & Observer)
= new reply since forum marked as read
