Criminal Law Commons^™

Innocent Until Born: Why Prisons Should Stop Shackling Pregnant Women To Protect The Child, Melanie Kalmanson

Florida State University Law Review

The practice of American prisons to shackle and otherwise restrain incarcerated, preg-nant women is problematic for several reasons. Such practices include shackling, chaining, and handcuffing pregnant inmates during their third trimester, transportation to and from medical facilities, labor and delivery, and postpartum recovery. Current discourse on this topic focuses primarily on how these practices invade the woman’s civil liberties, particularly the Eighth Amendment right against cruel and unusual punishment, and international human rights. Recent case law vindicates policy rationales for such practices—safety of others, safety of the woman herself, and securing flight risks.

These discussions overlook and this Note confronts …