FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - The Kentucky Senate has passed a bill aimed at steering more pregnant inmates into rehabilitation centers to treat their drug addiction.
Senators voted 33-4 Monday evening to send the measure to the House.
The bill is a response to Kentucky's surging incarceration rate among women, many of them facing drug charges. It's part of a larger problem in a state struggling to find enough prison beds.
To qualify, pregnant inmates could not be charged with violent or sexual offenses. They would have to reside at a rehabilitation center and complete treatment.
They would have to stay out of trouble, show up for their court appearances and have no contact with their alleged victims or potential witnesses who might testify at their trials.
