When I read that Silicon Valley fraudster Elizabeth Holmes was sentenced to 11 years in federal prison, I thought, “Ehh, it’s probably fancy rich people minimum security prison and she’ll be out in 7.” It’s weird that defrauding rich idiots gets you more prison time than raping an unconscious woman behind a dumpster, or running an international child sex trafficking ring, but it’s also hardly the most draconian term of imprisonment in America today.
But then I saw that she’s pregnant. Lucky for her, the First Step Act prohibited the shackling of pregnant women giving birth. In the past, women giving birth had their arms and feet strapped down with handcuffs (because if not, they might re-offend while giving birth?). But that’s about the only good news for her and her baby.
Forcibly separating mothers from their newborns is torture. And seven years looms larger if you consider the first seven years of human development. If she ends up serving closer to the full 11 years she’ll get out when the kid is practically a teenager.
An audit by the National Women’s Center found that a majority of state facilities don’t offer prenatal care, including access to a doctor. Most states don’t have nurseries to allow mothers to bond with their newborns. At the federal level, they found that pre-natal care in inconsistent. It doesn’t appear that federal facilities have nurseries.
Holmes should use her position of still-great privilege to speak out about the pain pregnant women and women with children behind bars. In that, she’d be joining a rich tradition of wealthy monsters who became advocates for criminal justice reform after seeing the reality of the system from the inside.
Jared Kushner spearheaded the First Step Act alongside clemency advocates and progressive activist Van Jones. All kinds of #Resistance conspiracy theories circulated about why they were really passing criminal reform legislation (“SO DRUMPF CAN PARDON HIMSELF WHEN MUELLER PUTS HIM IN PRISON!!!”) but it seems like Kushner, at least, had a genuine commitment inspired after his father spent years in federal prison. Bernard Kerick speaks out about the horrors of solitary confinement. Nixon stooge Charles Colson spent seven months in prison for Watergate crimes and upon his release started a Christian ministry. The group would push humane conditions inside and “restorative justice” programs. Elizabeth Holmes can redeem herself by taking up the cause of pregnant women and women with young children who are behind bars.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Substance to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.