Babies behind bars: An extensive look into the implementation of prison nurseries vs. community based care programs in the state of Oklahoma

Abstract

Each year, about 40,000 pregnant women are incarcerated in the U.S. The infants are usually taken from their mothers within the first 24-48 hours of birth and placed in foster care or kinship foster care. Only ten of the fifty states allow for women to keep their babies with them in prison if they have a non-violent record and only 18 months left on their sentence. Attachment Theory states that the relationship formed between infants and their parents mirrors a behavioral system that has adapted to bolster survival and proficient functioning as a child and later on in adulthood. When babies are taken from their mothers due to the mothers' incarceration, relationship bonds are severed that can be detrimental to the child's later wellbeing. Implementing prison nurseries or community based care programs within the community provides punitive sentencing time for the mothers without the detrimental consequences for their children. These programs provide mothers with the resources they need to get treatment, a job, and education while caring for and forming bonds with their children.