For over three decades, Wisconsin law has required the Department of Corrections (DOC) to provide programming that allows incarcerated mothers to maintain physical custody of their infants in the first year of their lives. Yet until now, this mandate has gone unfulfilled.
Alyssa's story reveals the human cost of this systemic failure.
While serving a two-year sentence at Robert E. Ellsworth Correctional Center in Union Grove, Wisconsin, Alyssa experienced pregnancy and gave birth while incarcerated. "When I would go from the county jail for appointments, I would be handcuffed. I would sit in the waiting room of my doctor's office in orange," she recalls, describing the indignity of prenatal care while visibly incarcerated.
During labor, male guards were present until right before it was time to push. While giving birth, Alyssa didn’t know anyone in the room. Then, just one day after giving birth to her son Bentley, Alyssa was forced to part ways with him.
"That's one of the hardest things I've ever had to do in my life," Alyssa recounts. "I've been with my other children for this part of their life, and now I'm not with Bentley — and it's heartbreaking."
This separation wasn't just emotionally devastating – it was illegal. Wisconsin statute 301.049, established in 1991, explicitly requires the DOC to offer programming allowing incarcerated mothers physical custody of their infants in the least restrictive setting. The Wisconsin Legislature has allocated funds for this Mother-Young Child Care Program annually. “I would’ve been able to create the bond and get to know him.”
Hope emerged when a fellow incarcerated person discovered the statute and shared it with Alyssa. "She found it and showed it to me and I took it to my public defender," Alyssa explains. "Then, she finally got us in touch with the ACLU."
Despite this legal right, DOC officials denied Alyssa's application, claiming the statute was "outdated and unfunded." Meanwhile, the separation took its toll: "I'm watching my child grow up in pictures. He's almost 18 months, and he doesn't say ‘mom’."
On February 6, 2025, justice arrived when a Dane County Circuit Court judge ruled in favor of the ACLU of Wisconsin's lawsuit against the DOC. The court determined that the department must immediately implement the Mother-Young Child Care program for all eligible mothers.
"We are pleased that the court agreed with us and impacted mothers in this state," said Ryan Cox, Legal Director at the ACLU of Wisconsin. "By denying parents this opportunity, the DOC has continued to violate the law and deprive parents and their young children of a chance to build strong relationships."
This landmark victory means mothers will finally have access to programming that allows them to parent their children under the age of one – maintaining crucial early bonds that benefit both parent and child.
Alyssa's courage has opened doors for thousands of justice-impacted Wisconsin families. While the immediate ruling provides a court order mandating the DOC to implement the Mother-Young Child Care Program in Wisconsin, there is more work to be done to ensure incarcerated mothers are provided safe, stable ways to connect with their children in the first year of their life.
Learn more about the legal case, our Pregnant in Prison campaign, or our work for criminal legal reform.
