My life as a Juvenile Detention Officer .. Pregnant Teens in Prison .. Janet's Story

I worked with many pregnant girls during my 12 years of working as a Detention Officer. It was never easy listening to these girls talk about their hopes and dreams and plans for their "future" family. The majority of the time, these girls has no family support, the father was normally young , unemployed and uneducated so support from them was almost non existent. Most of these girls ended up in foster homes and since they were unable to support their children, the child also ended up either in foster care or put up for adoption.

When I first met Janet, I sensed she was different. She seemed to be well educated and from a family that would be extremely supportive of her and her baby. Boy was I ever wrong? Janet was brought to Juvy when she was 15 years old and 6 months pregnant. She had turned herself in because she wanted to get an old warrant cleared before her baby was born. I asked her about her warrant. The story that unfolded literally blew me away. She and her baby's dad had known each other practically all their lives. When she found out she was pregnant, she told her mother. she was not prepared for what transpired next. Since the Baby's dad was 18, the mother called the cops and reported it as a statutory rape! The father was arrested and Janet was hauled off to a foster home where she was told that her baby would most likely be put up for adoption. When Janet found out she most likely would not get to keep her baby, she ran away from the foster home, went to see an attorney and got the charges against the father dropped as he was only 17 when Janet got pregnant. She then started the process of emancipation which meant she needed to find a way to support herself and her baby. Janet was determined that her baby would grow up in a loving supportive and caring home. Her whole purpose became all about keeping and taking care of her baby. And that she did!!

I would volunteer to take Janet to her OB/GYN appointments during her stay at Juvy. She got so excited on the day of her ultrasound, especially when the doctor told her she was having a boy. She looked up at me with a big grin and thanked me for being there with her. She said she always thought it would be her mother there but she knew now that would never happen. Especially since the last few times she came to visit her in Juvy, all she could talk about was why she felt Janet's baby would be much better off being put up for adoption and that this would free Janet up to come back home and finish her education.

At the end of the examination and ultrasound, a nurse walked in and asked if Janet was ready to talk to her case worker? What? Why is she here, Janet asked. "Oh, she is here with your mother to talk about your signing the adoption papers," the nurse replied. "Then you can tell them both to leave now! I am not signing any adoption papers and I refuse to talk to either of them!"

To make a long story short, Janet found her support in both her grandmother, the baby's dad and the baby's dad's family! Her grandmother filed for and got legal custody of both Janet and her baby until Janet turned 18. She was able to finish up her high school education, got a job and even started taking online courses. She and the Baby's dad eventually moved in with his family until they were able to afford their own place. They had a beautiful healthy and happy baby boy, eventually got married and later had a beautiful little girl.

http://pregnancy.lovetoknow.com/wiki/Pregnancy_Statistics_Teens:

Statistics on Teen Pregnancy
Vilma Ruddock
By Vilma Ruddock
M.D.

Most teen pregnancies are not planned and can have a lasting effect. Pregnant teens are at high risk of developing high blood pressure and often have significant financial stresses. The number of teens who get pregnant each year fluctuates but has been decreasing overall over the past few years.

Startling Statistics

Pregnancy statistics for teens show that almost 448,000 teenage girls became pregnant in 2013; almost 60 percent of these pregnancies resulted in births. In fact, around 25 percent of women have been pregnant at least once by the time they reach their twentieth birthday. Less than 20 percent of these pregnancies are intentional.

High Rates for U.S. Teens
While teen pregnancy is a problem in many parts of the world, the United States has the highest teen birth rate among developed countries. In any given year, the U.S. teen birth rate is double that of the United Kingdom and around four times that of Germany and France.

Why is the U.S. teen pregnancy rate so high? Some people blame the highly sexualized images children see on television and in their favorite movies. Others believe it's a lack of effective sex education. While most experts agree teen pregnancy can be attributed to a number of factors, effective contraception remains crucial in the fight against this complex social issue. A sexually active teenage girl who does not use regular contraception has almost 90 percent chance of becoming pregnant within one year.

Statistics on Pregnancy Consequences

While around 35 percent of all teenage pregnancies end in abortion, there are many girls who decide to keep their babies. These young moms face many challenges. They often have few or no job skills. Employment opportunities may be limited for these mothers; research shows that between 2009 and 2010, around 48 percent of teen mothers lived below the poverty line. For teen mothers who still lived with their parents, only 34 percent lived below the poverty line; however, for teens that lived on their own, this number went up to 63 percent. Nearly two-thirds of teen mothers receive some type of public assistance during the first year of their child's life; this includes Medicaid, food stamps, and other assistance.

Absent Teenage Fathers

In many cases, the child's father is either missing or unable to provide the proper financial support; almost 80 percent of teens do not marry the fathers of their children. More than half of teen parents have no child support agreement in place and of the 29 percent who do have a legal agreement, only half actually received child support payments. Although many teen moms do receive assistance from their own parents, a large number must learn to care for their children with little or no outside help.

Overwhelming Responsibilities

Teen moms often find the responsibilities of parenthood to be overwhelming. They struggle to finish their education; only 50 percent of teenage mothers have a high school diploma by age 22 compared to 90 percent of women who did not get pregnant during adolescence. Many teen moms discover that their babies place a strain on fragile friendships.

Consequences for Children of Teenage Mothers

Statistics show that children who are born to teenage mothers are immediately placed at a greater risk of developing many physical, social, and behavioral problems. For example, 10 percent of teens between 15-19 get no prenatal care during the first trimester of pregnancy; this number increases to 25 percent for girls under 15. Since many pregnant teens are also still developing physically, this means that they are much more likely to have premature babies or preterm labor. Preterm and/or low birth weight babies often have developmental disabilities or chronic medical conditions that require regular physical therapy.

As they mature, children of teen mothers must still overcome many obstacles. For example, boys born to mothers under the age of 19 are 13 percent more likely to be incarcerated at some point in their lives. Daughters of teen moms are over 20 percent more likely to have their own children at a young age. Children of both sexes have lower standardized test scores and are less likely to earn their high school diplomas.

Consequences for Society

Teenage pregnancy has massive financial consequences. In fact, one report suggested that teen pregnancy costs the U.S. almost $10 billion per year; this includes increased medical care, foster care, increased incarceration rates among the children of teen parents, and lost tax revenue.

Reducing Teen Pregnancy

Obviously it is possible to be a teen parent and go on to achieve all of your dreams. However, it is a difficult path for many teen parents and many don't reach their goals in life.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other organizations have established programs to lower teen pregnancies and to help people prevent unplanned pregnancies with better family planning. Parents and other family members also play a role in this endeavor. By working together, teen pregnancy rate may continue to decrease.

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@markwhittam grew up in the care of CPS and then many years later he and his family had to flee their country under threats from the state to take their child because they home schooled.

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We are Family Protection, Keeping Families Safe, Together.

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"Let the things break your heart that break the heart of God!"

...steemit posts in support of @familyprotection by @thethreehugs...

Mandatory-dna-testing-for-all-youth-in-the-system

https://steemit.com/familyprotection/@thethreehugs/my-life-as-a-juvenile-detention-officer-mandatory-dna-testing-for-all-youth-in-the-system

Coming to Terms with Alcohol, Drugs and Sex

https://steemit.com/family/@thethreehugs/coming-to-terms-with-alcohol-drugs-and-sex

https://steemit.com/familyprotection/@thethreehugs/my-life-as-a-juvenile-detention-officer-a-series-of-true-stories-of-abuse-of-children-rachelle-s-story

My Wish for You! In Support of the "Victims"

https://steemit.com/colorchallenge/@thethreehugs/colorchallenge-blue-friday-my-wish-for-you-in-support-of-the-victims-familyprotection

My life as a Juvenile Detention Officer...A series of True Stories of Abuse of Children (Introduction)

https://steemit.com/familyprotection/@thethreehugs/my-life-as-a-juvenile-detention-officer-a-series-of-true-stories-of-abuse-of-children-introduction

My life as a Juvenile Detention Officer...A series of True Stories of Abuse of Children - Maria (Part 1)

https://steemit.com/familyprotection/@thethreehugs/my-life-as-a-juvenile-detention-officer-a-series-of-true-stories-of-abuse-of-children-maria-part-1

My life as a Juvenile Detention Officer...A series of True Stories of Abuse of Children - Maria (Part 2)

https://steemit.com/familyprotection/@thethreehugs/my-life-as-a-juvenile-detention-officer-a-series-of-true-stories-of-abuse-of-children-maria-part-2

My life as a Juvenile Detention Officer...A series of True Stories of Abuse of Children - Tanisha - From The Cradle to The Grave

https://steemit.com/familyprotection/@thethreehugs/my-life-as-a-juvenile-detention-officer-a-series-of-true-stories-of-abuse-of-children-tanisha-from-the-cradle-to-the-grave

What are the three things that cannot remain hidden?

https://steemit.com/familyprotection/@thethreehugs/what-are-the-three-things-that-cannot-remain-hidden

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