A Denver woman has filed a lawsuit alleging she was left alone in a jail cell while giving birth. The Denver Sheriff Department denies its deputies did anything wrong.
Diana is suing Denver Health Medical Center, the city and county of Denver, and six sheriff’s deputies and nurses. The lawsuit says she was denied medical help while in labor on July 31, 2018, after being served breakfast around 5 a.m.
According to the lawsuit, surveillance video from her cell shows her talking to someone at the door around 6:30 a.m. and knocking for attention around 9:30 a.m., when her water reportedly broke. The suit says she told staff she was in labor and in pain, and that about 15 minutes later an absorbent pad was slid under the door. Video reportedly shows her in pain for about 30 minutes, alone, before delivering a baby boy. A nurse then entered the cell.
Her attorney, Mari Newman, described the way staff responded after the birth as unprepared. Diana says she told staff she had been having contractions all morning and that an ambulance was not called until after the baby was born. The suit says a non emergency van was ordered to take her to the hospital, and that no clamps were found to clamp or cut the umbilical cord.
“I felt helpless. Nobody was helping me,” Diana said, according to local reports.
The Denver Sheriff Department has denied its deputies did anything wrong and says they followed protocol, but it has since changed its policies for women in labor. These are allegations in a lawsuit that has not been decided by a court.
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