A lawsuit filed this week alleges that a woman from Kentucky, who was in isolated pretrial detention, was compelled to give birth on a toilet in a Tennessee jail.
Alyssia Moulton, aged 34, has filed a lawsuit against Southern Health Partners, the medical provider for the lockup facility in Montgomery County. The lawsuit has been filed in federal court and includes several named and unnamed defendants.
The lawsuit, which spans 65 pages and includes exhibits, alleges that the staff showed a complete lack of concern for the mother’s suffering and medical requirements. The filing alleges that there were instances of medical negligence and violations of due process by the staff and medical provider. The lawsuit involves a baby as a plaintiff, claiming that all the defendants have infringed upon the baby’s due process rights.
The identity of Moulton’s son is only revealed as “A.M.” in the filing.
The allegations detailed in the filing form a disturbing narrative that resembles a horrifying medical ordeal.
“Ms. Moulton was alone in her jail cell when she delivered the baby,” the lawsuit reads. “She delivered the baby into the toilet. As a result of delivery into the toilet, A.M. suffered various injuries, including a blood infection of Gram-Positive Cocci and an eye infection of Citrobacter freundii.”
According to the filing, Moulton was detained on Aug. 19, 2023, on a burglary charge. She discovered her pregnancy when Southern Health Partners employees tested her while she was in jail.
According to the lawsuit, a non-doctor healthcare worker conducted a medical evaluation related to the pregnancy test. According to the lawsuit, the medical care did not follow the same approach and Moulton was never given an appointment for a doctor’s evaluation.
The lawsuit claims that the mother was not provided with an ultrasound, despite the knowledge of her pregnancy by jail staff.
Then, the pregnant woman was reportedly abandoned to fend for herself.
A lawsuit references an opinion from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) regarding the treatment of pregnant inmates.
Moulton asserts that she made multiple complaints to medical staff regarding contractions on the morning of her son’s birth. A log entry in the lawsuit mentions a visit by the nursing staff, during which one of the defendants noted that no palpable contraction was observed.
The lawsuit claims that the nurses failed to address Ms. Moulton’s concerns about contractions and knowingly ignored the potential danger of her imminent delivery.
Moulton was reportedly returned to solitary confinement just two days after giving birth, according to the filing. The mother and child were finally reunited on September 5, 2023, according to the lawsuit.
Moulton also asserts that her drug withdrawal treatment was minimal as reported by Law&Crime.
The plaintiff has filed a lawsuit on four counts in the Middle District of Tennessee. She is seeking compensatory damages for future pecuniary and non-pecuniary losses, physical and mental pain, humiliation, discomfort, fear, anxiety, loss of enjoyment of life, loss of liberty, privacy, and sense of security and individual dignity, and other non-pecuniary losses. The lawsuit also requests punitive damages and attorney’s fees.