A Florida woman who was held in a jail cell says she was ignored by officers as she screamed for help during labor and it resulted in the death of her baby girl.
RELATED STORIES: Sheriff Condemns Deputies Behavior After They Refused To Help Woman Give Birth In Jail Cell
Erica Thompson was placed at the Alachua County Jail in Gainsville Monday afternoon after violating her probation on a perjury charge. However, she was six months pregnant and explained on her social media page about the neglect she experienced while in labor with her daughter. In the post, Thompson said a nurse told her that she was not in labor because she wasn’t dilated after checking into a hospital a day before. Officers finally contacted EMS after noticing Thompson was in labor but her newborn was born before EMS arrived.
The mother of two added that medical officials did not place the baby in an incubator after she gave birth because UF Health Shands hospital staff believed the newborn was not going to survive.
“They didn’t try to put her in an incubator or save her or anything. As soon as I got there they had her in a crib and said my baby wasn’t going to survive. My baby is in my arms still moving, heart pumping — Why aren’t you all trying to save her?” she said.
RELATED STORIES: John McAfee, Who Feared He’d Be “WHACKED”, Is Found Dead In Spanish Jail Cell By Apparent Suicide
An investigation is currently underway as reported by Sheriff’s Lt. Kaley Behl after learning about the incident.
“Just like any inmate coming into the jail, they get medically screened before they are even taken in. She was taken and housed in the female infirmary and put on 15-minute checks. She ended up going into active labor and they called EMS. She had the baby before EMS got on the scene. They assisted her in delivering the baby and sent her and the baby out to the hospital.”
Protestors rallied outside of the jail after learning about Thompson’s story.
SOURCE: The Gainsville Sun