Government failure

An Alabama Mom Delivered a Preterm Baby in a Jail Cell. She Says Staff Refused To Help.

The mother is suing after she delivered her preterm baby on the jail's floor following 24 hours of labor with no medical assistance.

Autumn Billings | 5.15.2026 4:58 PM

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(Tiffany McElroy/Simon Campbell/Dreamstime)

A woman is suing Houston County in southeast Alabama for violating her constitutional rights after she was forced to give birth preterm with no medical assistance in the county jail. 

The lawsuit, filed in federal court earlier this week, accuses the county, jail, and officers involved, in part, of deliberate indifference to serious medical needs and the denial of medical care in violation of the 14th Amendment. 

Tiffany McElroy was 34 weeks pregnant with a history of preterm labor when she was arrested on May 23, 2024, on chemical endangerment charges, according to the complaint filed on McElroy's behalf by the nonprofit Pregnancy Justice. The charge, which involves exposing children, including fetuses, to a controlled or chemical substance or drug paraphernalia, stemmed from allegations that McElroy had used substances during her pregnancy.

In the early hours of May 26, 2024, while in Houston County Jail, McElroy alerted the........

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