We have to take action.
In September 2005, although still two weeks from her due date, Samantha Luther, incarcerated in Wisconsin, was allegedly taken in handcuffs and leg shackles to the local hospital, and informed that labor was going to be induced. She told a reporter, "I was in shock... I felt like all of my rights had been taken away." Reportedly, her handcuffs were taken off, while her shackles remained on providing 18 inches between her ankles. The doctor ruptured her amniotic sac, and had her pace the hospital hallway for several hours. "It was so humiliating. My ankles were raw," Luther said. Luther was given drugs to induce labor, when it did not begin, and reportedly was left in her shackles until just before birth. She reported, "I had shackles on up until the baby was coming out and then they took them off for me to push... It was unbelievable. Like I was going to go anywhere." She gave birth to a son. Reportedly, it is common to induce inmates before term, however, according to DOC officials, an inmate must sign a consent form.
