Prison doctor touts advantages of keeping mom, baby together in jail

VANCOUVER – A prison doctor says there are physical and social health benefits for inmate mothers and their babies if the pair is allowed to stay together in jail.

But Crown lawyers are questioning Dr. Ruth Martin’s expertise on the question, noting she has no training in the area of recidivism.

Two former inmates are challenging the B.C. government’s decision in 2009 to cancel the program, saying it violated their charter rights.

Martin was one of the physicians who treated inmates at Alouette Correctional Centre for Women, including those who participated in the now-cancelled mother-baby program, and in a report submitted as evidence today, Martin wrote about the advantages of the program.

But the Crown argued the studies of the other mother-baby programs noted in her report cannot be compared to Alouette’s program because they are different.

Earlier in the day, the court also heard from Sarah Payne, who used to work at a unit at B.C. Women’s Hospital that treated pregnant women with substance abuse issues and suggested the program be created to allow female prisoners to continue to take care of their newborns while serving out their sentences.