I GAVE BIRTH HANDCUFFED

Jennifer, 40, turned life around after her son was born

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For most mums, finding out they're pregnant with their first child is a cherished and happy memory. Dreams of tiny knitted booties and that first precious newborn cuddle fill their heads, but for Jennifer, it was the start of a nightmare.

'I found out I was pregnant in June of 2011,' she explains. 'The week I found out I was pregnant, I actually went to jail.' After being convicted of a string of theft-related charges, connected to breaking into homes, Jennifer's baby dreams were snatched away, as she was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

'I spent my entire pregnancy incarcerated,' she reveals, explaining that she was locked up, away from her family and her baby's father, Kyle.

'I came from a good family,' Jennifer says. 'I went to good schools. No one's been in trouble. So there's always been judgement of this black sheep that I am. Most of my family members, they were pretty fed up with me continuing to do things and live a lifestyle that wasn't the greatest.

'The only person that was really around was Kyle, my son's father. He wasn't involved in any of my crimes or any of my lifestyle.'

But just as Jennifer and Kyle found out that there was a baby on the way, Jennifer was jailed.

'It was extremely difficult to see her taken from me, especially as she was pregnant,' Kyle says. As Jennifer's bump grew and she felt those first fluttering kicks from her unborn child, it was all under the watchful eye of prison guards. And nine months into her 120-month sentence, Jennifer went into labour.

Yet she was still treated like a prisoner.