Tougher prison baby custody rules OK’d

Gov. Jim Gibbons signed emergency regulations Friday to ensure that babies born to Nevada prison inmates are given to responsible caregivers.

The regulations require the Nevada Department of Corrections to do background checks on anyone who takes temporary custody of an inmate's baby. The prison then will send the results of those checks to the state's Department of Health and Human Services, which could investigate further if necessary.

"While still respecting the rights of the mother, we need to ensure that infants born to our inmates are placed in safe environments," Gibbons said in a prepared statement.

There were 55 babies born to prison inmates in 2006 and 2007. The governor's office said nine inmates are currently pregnant.

The issue came to light about two weeks ago after authorities announced that a 3-year-old girl believed to have been born to a Nevada inmate was found living in a Wisconsin drug house. The girl was living with a woman from Green Bay who had an extensive criminal history and who told authorities she got the girl through the Nevada prison department.

The Department of Corrections is waiting for DNA results to verify who the mother is.

Until the governor signed the emergency regulations, Nevada, unlike many states, didn't do background checks on potential guardians for babies born to inmates. The Department of Corrections previously allowed the mother to choose the baby's caregiver.

Under the regulations, a prison social worker will work with pregnant inmates to coordinate who takes custody of the newborn. Once the mother chooses a caregiver, the Prison Department runs a criminal background check on that person.

If the caregiver isn't appropriate, the Department of Health and Human Services will work with local government agencies to place the baby.

Donna Coleman, a longtime child welfare advocate, said the safeguards were a much- needed step.

"Obviously this was something that should have been done a long time ago," she said. "I applaud the governor for taking the role of the director of health and human services."

Authorities initially thought the 3-year-old girl found in Wisconsin may have been Everlyse Cabrera, the girl who went missing from her foster parents' home in 2006. Green Bay police later said they did not think the girl was Everlyse, but are waiting for DNA results before they rule out the possibility.

The girl was found with Heidi Hildahl, a 38-year-old woman who was arrested on prostitution charges during an April 22 drug raid. She said the girl is her husband's granddaughter, according to a police affidavit.

In an interview with Green Bay's NBC affiliate, Hildahl, also known as Heidi Larios, said she received permission from the mother to have the girl, but she didn't explain in detail.

Wisconsin authorities believe the girl was born to Danielle Allen in 2005. Allen served time at the woman's prison in North Las Vegas on a drug charge, but the prison doesn't have a record of the birth, according to a police affidavit.

Allen is currently out of custody and living out of state. The girl is in protective custody.

Contact reporter David Kihara at dkihara@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039.