Dear Commissioners and Judge Klaeger,

I was shocked and saddened to hear about the experience that Nicole Guerrero had in a Texas jail cell when she was pregnant. No woman should be denied medical care or have to give birth alone in a jail cell.

The Texas Jail Project estimates that Texas county jails incarcerate some 500 pregnant women on average each month. For these women, I call on you to set written policies and procedures to address the needs of pregnant women in jail.

The following standards and best practices should be established as minimum standards:

1. Implement the current standard requiring jails to have a good medical plan that ensures timely and appropriate prenatal care, specialized obstetrical services when indicated, and postpartum care.
2. When a pregnant woman says that she is experiencing labor symptoms, the jail shall provide an immediate evaluation by an obstetric specialist. If there is no obstetric specialist on site, an ambulance shall be called immediately and the woman shall be transferred to an appropriate medical care facility. In the event that a woman gives birth in the correctional facility, immediately call an ambulance to transfer both the mother and baby to a hospital.
3. Prohibit the placement of pregnant women in any form of solitary confinement, including a medical segregation cell.

Please make sure that all Texas county jails are safe and provide prompt and appropriate medical care to all pregnant women in their custody.