Bill banning shackling of pregnant inmates heads to SC governor’s desk
South Carolina lawmakers voted to send a bill to the governor’s desk Tuesday that will ban the shackling of pregnant or postpartum inmates at prisons and jails across the state.
The S.C. House of Representatives unanimously voted to approve amendments, added to the bill by the Senate, which would prevent invasive cavity searches of pregnant people in prison and ensure they are provided a nutritional diet.
The bill, which takes effect with the governor’s signature, also says pregnant inmates and detainees cannot be placed in restrictive housing environments unless they are a threat to themselves or others, and requires jail or prison administrators to assign them to a lower bunk bed. Prisons and jails almost must provide menstrual hygiene products at all facilities.
“South Carolina has shown some real leadership here,” said S.C. Rep. Nancy Mace, the bill’s sponsor.
The Berkeley County Republican introduced the bill after Congress passed sweeping criminal justice reform in the First Steps Act, which also included a provision banning the shackling of pregnant women and federal facilities. Mace said she was inspired by that legislation, and was looking to mirror it in South Carolina law.
The bill itself prohibits the use of leg, ankle and waist restraints on pregnant prisoners or detainees. It also requires law enforcement to handcuff women in front of their bodies, so they can brace themselves in case of a fall.
Protections in the bill also extend to women who have just given birth. It prohibits shackling during the first skin-to-skin contact between a mother and a newborn and during nursing unless the mother is believed to be a threat to herself or others. Using waist restraints after the birth is also prohibited under the bill.
The S.C. Department of Corrections banned the practice of shackling state inmates last year, but witnesses testified to seeing a pregnant inmate shackled while in labor earlier this year.
“Director (Bryan) Stirling fully supports this legislation and has testified twice in its support,” S.C. Department of Corrections spokeswoman Chrysti Shain said in a statement.
The bill first passed the House in April 2019, with only three lawmakers voting against it. In early March 2020, the Senate passed the bill unanimously after adding on the amendments.
“It was enormous, especially during an era where there is so much division,” Mace said, pointing to the bill’s bipartisan support.
S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster will sign the bill into law once it hits his desk, his spokesman Brian Symmes said.
The South Carolina chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union celebrated the bill’s passage Tuesday.
“We are thrilled that the South Carolina Legislature has ended the cruel and inhumane practice of shackling incarcerated people during labor, childbirth, and postpartum recovery,” ACLU of South Carolina policy and communications director Ali Titus said in a statement. “This legislation will greatly increase the likelihood of positive outcomes for parents and their newborn children, and we look forward to the day it is signed into law by Governor McMaster.”
This story was originally published May 13, 2020 at 11:37 AM.
