The barbed wire perimeter fence at the Ohio Reformatory for Women.
Inmate Sharlene Henry dresses baby Delilah at the Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women in Bedford Hills, New York.
Inmates care for babies at Bedford Hills’ daycare center.
A pregnant inmate waits to give birth at Bedford Hills.
Delilah Henry plays with her aunts hair during visiting hours.
Seven-month old Delilah Henry at Bedford Hills.
Mothers and nannies rock babies at the Ohio Reformatory for Women’s prison nursery.
The view from a bunk window, Ohio Reformatory for Women.
Inmate Takaya Patterson bottle feeds her son Takeem.
Inmate Takaya Patterson with seven-month old son Takeem.
Baby shoes in the supply closet at the Ohio Reformatory.
Mothers watch TV in the day area at the Ohio Reformatory.
A general population bunk at the Ohio Reformatory.
In most cases, babies born to incarcerated mothers are whisked away within hours after birth. They are handed over to relatives or placed in foster care while their mothers serve their time. But at a small handful of women’s prisons across the country, infants are allowed to move in with mom — behind bars.
For theGrio and Essence Magazine, NBC’s Mara Schiavocampo visited women and infants in two of these prisons — one in Ohio, the other in upstate New York — where nurseries are a part of prison life.
To read more about Mothers Behind Bars, check out the May edition of Essence Magazine and watch NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams.
