BABY STILLBORN; CRACK USE PROBED

It's Unclear What Charges, If Any, Mother May Face

Jackson police are awaiting the results of an autopsy to determine if drugs
played a role in the death of a Jackson woman's baby.

Pamela Tanner, 31, who was eight months pregnant, ingested crack cocaine,
said Hinds County Coroner Sharon Grisham-Stewart, citing medical records.

She also attempted to swallow a glass pipe, Grisham-Stewart said.

Tanner gave birth Thursday at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
The baby girl was stillborn.

An autopsy was performed on the baby Friday night. The cause of death is
pending, and toxicology tests have been ordered at the state Crime Lab,
Grisham-Stewart said.

It's unclear what charges, if any, the woman could face if it is determined
that drug use contributed to the baby girl being stillborn.

"We are not aware of any such charges ever being filed in Mississippi,"
said Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Compretta. But Compretta said that
doesn't mean JPD could not bring charges.

Last year, the Legislature passed House Bill 923, making it a crime to kill
a fetus. The law does not apply to legal abortions. It applies to anyone
who intentionally injures a pregnant woman and the conduct results in a
miscarriage or stillbirth. A conviction is a felony, punishable by a
maximum 20 years and a $7,500 fine, or both.

Hinds County District Attorney Faye Peterson said she would have to look at
the law passed in 2000 but wasn't aware of any state statute that would
allow for a felony charge in the baby's death.

Peterson said babies are born to crack addicted mothers and no charges are
filed. She said the Department of Human Services may intervene in such cases.

Police spokesman Robert Graham said police responded to a request for
assistance from American Medical Response about 11 a.m. Thursday and found
Tanner lying outside a home at 3404 Memphis St. Police did not see the
woman take drugs. "She was acting very irrational," Graham said.

Emma Caldwell, who lives at the home on Memphis Street, said she was
heartbroken to know Tanner's child had died.

"That's so sad," said Caldwell, who called paramedics after seeing the
woman outside her home. "The baby was probably dead when she was out here."

Caldwell said she had never seen the woman before and that she was acting
wild. She feared the woman would be hit by a car. Caldwell said the woman
walked up and down the street and then got in a small ditch near her home.

"She asked for water and I got her some. She took a sip and poured it out,"
Caldwell said. "You could see she was pregnant, but she kept saying she
wasn't pregnant."

Caldwell said she didn't see Tanner with any drugs, but she saw her pick up
rocks from the side of the street and put them in her mouth.

Johnny Bingham, Caldwell's husband, said of Tanner "she acted like she was
having a nervous breakdown or had got a hold of some bad stuff."

Bingham said he didn't know Tanner but had seen her walking before in the
neighborhood.

Tanner was listed in satisfactory condition Friday at UMC. She has not been
charged with a crime.