Woman Sues Maryland Jail Medical Provider After Giving Birth on Cell Floor
Jazmin Valentine, an eight months-pregnant woman arrested for an alleged probation violation accuses local sheriffs deputies of violating her rights under state law and the Constitution,. She claims jail nurses ignored her screams and pleas for help for six hours.
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Jazmin Valentine, an eight months-pregnant woman arrested for an alleged probation violation and taken to the Washington County jail in Hagerstown, MD., has filed a federal suit against Washington County, Maryland, its sheriff department and sheriff, as well as nurses and deputies at the jail, accusing them of violating her rights under state law and the Constitution, reports Colleen Slevin for the Associated Press.
Valentine alleges that she was left to give birth to her baby alone on the floor of her cell after jail nurses ignored her screams and pleas for help for six hours. Valentine also claims that nurses laughed at her, accused her of not being in labor and, instead, going through addiction withdrawal, and even ignored a concern raised by a jail deputy. Because of the unsanitary conditions in the cell, the baby developed a type of staph bacteria infection that is resistant to many antibiotics. The nurses were working for the jail’s contracted medical provider, Pennsylvania-based PrimeCare Medical, Inc.
