Giving birth completely on your own — as rare a situation as that is — is terrifying. But can you imagine giving birth alone in a jail cell, and being left alone for almost seven hours as your cries for help went unanswered? That's exactly what one 34-year-old mother says happened to her on April 10, when she had her newborn daughter in a Florida jail.
Tammy Jackson, who suffers from bipolar schizophrenia, was incarcerated at Broward County Jail in Ft. Lauderdale earlier this year.
According to Local 10 News, she was arrested on trespassing and drug charges. And while being pregnant in jail is likely terrifying on its own, she never could have expected the isolation, as well as emotional and physical torture, she would experience after going into labor.
"It was horrifying. It was horrifying," Jackson told the outlet, while describing how she had to deliver her own baby. In those harrowing moments, the mom said she couldn't grab her baby fast enough, and watched in horror as she hit the floor.
"When she fell, I had to bend down to pick her up and tell her, ‘I'm sorry. I didn't mean for that to happen,'" Jackson said. "She was still crying."
"I didn't even get clean before I had her," the mom continued, adding that she worried over whether her daughter was injured after falling.
"To me that was hard because she was just coming out of me," Jackson said. "I just apologized for her being in the jailhouse. The situation, because I would rather for my mom to be by my side in the hospital with me having her."
Jackson's mother, Shirley Nixon, told the outlet she was shocked when she learned how her daughter gave birth.
In addition to mental illness, Jackson has also struggled with homelessness, her mother shared. According to an incident report obtained by Local 10 News, a Broward County Sheriff's Office deputy did in fact see Jackson inside her isolation cell on the morning she went into labor. The deputy even took note that she was "screaming in pain."
However, why the woman wasn't taken to a hospital or treated by the jail's doctor remains unclear.
Instead, the sheriff only sought aid hours later, after hearing a baby's cries and seeing Jackson holding the child in her arms. It was then that she was rushed to a nearby hospital, but by this point, nearly seven hours had passed.
As the story has spread on social media, reactions to what Jackson experienced have been mixed.
Many Facebook users were appalled by how she was treated.
"Warden should be charged for attempted murder and child neglect," said one user.
"What is wrong with this country?" wrote another.
Another woman shared her own harrowing birth story, which was eerily similar: "I was born in a jail cell," the woman wrote. "My mom was locked up and i came very early. The ignored her crys for medical help and beat her. She gave birth to me and [her] cell mate helped wrap me in her shirt. Took my mom to hospital after and just took her off the books … Really messed up. We both almost died."
In the meantime, Jackson's baby -- who she's since named Miranda -- is being cared for Florida Department of Children and Families.
She was released from the hospital on Wednesday, the same day as her mother, and reportedly weighed 6 pounds, 7 ounces.
"I'm glad she's out and hopefully, things will fall into place," Nixon, told the news station. "She'll get her the help she needs, and I can get my grandbaby."
Others weren't so empathetic, and suggested that Jackson deserved what happened to her because of her alleged offense.
"Maybe she shouldn't have gotten arrested," wrote one man. "She also neglected to take better care of herself and her unborn child."
"She wouldn't of needed to cry for help if she wasn't in jail," wrote another.
For every negative comment though, there were plenty who came to Jackson's defense.
"What bothers me here is that there is an absolute innocent life that should be protected .. .and THAT is why doctors and nurses should have been present," wrote one woman. "That baby did not request this predicament at all."
"Why is it so much to ask that people act humanely?" wrote another.
But perhaps Jackson herself has the best response for those who dismiss what she's been through.
"It isn't a joke when it comes to pregnancy," Jackson told Local 10. "And if they don't want to abide by that, they should get fired because I don't believe no woman should really have to go through that."
Sadly, Jackson doesn't seem to have much faith that anything will be done about what happened to her, even though she says it should.
"It was neglect … emotional abuse," she said.
Her lack of faith in the system isn't completely unwarranted either, when you consider the rights of incarcerated individuals (or rather, lack thereof).
In 2017, an eye-opening report by the ACLU detailed the treatment of incarcerated women in the US prison system — most of whom are mothers.
"Nationwide, the criminal justice system is failing communities, hurting the economy, and destroying families — and putting women and mothers disproportionately behind bars for drug and property crimes," wrote Monifa Bandele, vice president and chief partnership & diversity officer, MomsRising, in response to the report.
In fact, of the nearly 2.2 million people currently in prison, some 39 percent are estimated to be incarcerated for lower-level, nonviolent crimes, such as minor drug possession and petty theft.
Furthermore, the ALCU reports that 60 percent of women currently sitting in jail have not actually been convicted of a crime, but are awaiting their trial, as was the case with Jackson. In the meantime, they are being separated from their children, which has unavoidable ripple effects for those who are the primary or sole caretakers. And for women who give birth behind bars, like Jackson, many states still shackle women during labor and birth, which adds to what criminal justice reform advocates say are inhumane conditions.
For now, Jackson says she hopes she can move on, and put her terrifying birth experience behind her. She also hopes to be reunited with her daughter.
On Wednesday, she shared with Local 10 the strength and motivation she continues to give herself, even if no one else will.
"You're a strong woman," she said. "Don't put yourself down not yet. Just be grateful and thankful that you're standing and, yes, you are strong."
She also praised and gave thanks to her public defender, who not only worked to get her released on her own recognizance while she awaits her trial, but is also pushing to have her parental rights restored as an investigation into the matter continues.
