Screaming For Help, Jailed Woman Gives Birth In Cell And Baby Dies Within Hours; This Should Never Happen Again, Lawmaker Says

By Mitch Perry, Florida Phoenix

April 11, 2023

In August of 2021, Erica Thompson was booked into the Alachua County Jail on a charge of violating her probation on a perjury charge. She told the jail staff that she was pregnant and having contractions. Screaming for help, she gave birth in jail to a baby named Ava, who was three months premature. The child was taken to a nearby hospital, where she died hours later, according to The Gainesville Sun.

An internal review by the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office later determined that that there was nothing done illegally on the part of Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, the newspaper said.

Tampa Democratic Rep. Dianne Hart says she hopes that a similar event never happens again.

That’s why she’s sponsoring legislation (HB 779) that would allow a pregnant woman convicted of a felony and sentenced to time in a state prison to petition the court to defer her entry into prison for up to 12 weeks after she gives birth to a child or when the pregnancy ends, whichever happens sooner.

The judge in the sentencing court would then make the decision about whether or not to grant that deferral. The judge would weigh a number of factors in making that decision – including the severity of the woman’s offense for which she was convicted, her previous criminal history, her health and whether deferring her time in prison poses a danger to the community.

The measure also would require that upon her initial booking into the facility, the woman can request a pregnancy test if she is still in custody 72 hours after her arrest – and after 72 hours, must be administered a pregnancy test within 24 hours.

Hart, who is chair of the Florida Legislative Black Caucus, has been a passionate advocate for improving Florida’s correctional facilities since entering the Legislature four years ago.

She told the House Justice Appropriations subcommittee on Tuesday that she had visited Lowell Correctional Institution on Monday, “and I had the opportunity to see some pregnant women and to speak to them. And the fact that some are giving up their babies in exchange for money, was very, very disturbing to me yesterday.”

The committee approved the proposal, 14-1, with Pinellas County Republican Berny Jacques the only representative to cast a dissenting vote.

The measure will now go the House Judiciary Committee for consideration. The Senate version, SB 730, sponsored by South Florida Democrat Shevin Jones has yet to be heard in committees.

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