It has come to my attention that the state of Virginia still has prison facilities where pregnant women are shackled.  As your constituent, I urge you to pass regulations forbidding this practice in any type of prison facility unless the restraints are deemed absolutely necessary.  

Shackling of pregnant women is opposed by the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association because of the health risks shackling poses to both the mother and her child.  Moreover, statistics indicate that in states where shackling of pregnant inmates has been eliminated during labor and delivery, there have been no instances of danger to other inmates, to prison or medical personnel, nor to the inmate herself.  

Please see that this practice is forbidden or at least severly limited in all local and regional prison facilities as it currently is limited in state-run prisons.

Yours truly,

Dr. Karen Cameron Scanlon