Public defense orgs condemn treatment of woman who gave birth in Brooklyn court
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The criminal courthouse in Brooklyn where Samantha Randazzo gave birth while waiting to be arraigned.AP Photo/Mark Lennihan
By Noah Powelson
A coalition of legal aid organizations are demanding the city and state launch an investigation after a woman gave birth inside a Brooklyn criminal courtroom, calling the incident “a profound moral failure” of the justice system.
The city’s leading legal aid organizations demanded a probe into the treatment of Samantha Randazzo, who was waiting to be arraigned in Brooklyn’s criminal courthouse on Friday when her water broke. She later gave birth on a courtroom bench.
According to the coalition, Randazzo was arrested on Thurs., May 14, for alleged drug possession and trespassing after the NYPD found her on the roof of a NYCHA building in Sheepshead Bay, where she lived, without permission. Police reportedly found a small amount of cocaine and heroin on her person.
Officers eventually took her to the city’s South Brooklyn Health hospital at 3:30 a.m. on Friday after she reported feeling sick. She was discharged Friday evening, then taken to Brooklyn Criminal Court for arraignment. Doctors reportedly were not aware of how close Randazzo was to giving birth when she was released, her attorney later told the New York Times.
Randazzo’s water broke as she awaited to be arraigned, and she reportedly gave birth to a son just before midnight on Friday. They were taken to a local hospital shortly after.
The coalition, which includes The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Defender Services, New York County Defender Services, The Bronx Defenders and Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem, condemned Randazzo’s treatment over the weekend. They said she reportedly spent more than 24 hours in custody, and did not have proper medical care or privacy when she gave birth in the Brooklyn courtroom.
They also said she was forced to give birth while still handcuffed – a claim that court officials denied.
The groups called on the city to perform a full review of medical staffing and emergency response protocols, as well as the treatment of pregnant people being detained.
“Ms. Randazzo had reportedly recently been discharged from a hospital despite being nine months pregnant before being returned to custody and brought to Brooklyn arraignments, where she went into labor in open court. That should horrify every New Yorker,” the groups said in a joint statement on Saturday. “What occurred in that courtroom was not simply a failure of protocol or preparedness. It was a profound moral failure and a devastating reflection of the cruelty embedded in our carceral system.”
News of Randazzo’s story sparked outrage over the weekend, but the Office of Court Administration and Randazzo’s own lawyer later contradicted the account given by the legal aid groups.
The coalition said that Randazzo gave birth while still handcuffed, and that she lacked privacy as she was surrounded by court personnel, prosecutors, law enforcement officers and others. The coalition said that attorneys and staff from The Legal Aid Society and Brooklyn Defender Services were present in the courtroom when she went into labor, and witnessed the birth.
OCA officials refuted this claim, stating that Randazzo was initially handcuffed when she was brought in, but that the cuffs were promptly removed by officers once it became clear she had gone into labor. Wynton Sharpe, Randazzo’s attorney, additionally told the New York Times that the judge and court officers worked to clear the courtroom as other officers helped deliver the baby.
“Our team of uniformed UCS officers acted with swift professionalism to ensure the safety and sanctity of life for all individuals in Court on Friday, personifying the everyday virtues of their sworn service,” Al Baker, a state OCA spokesperson, said in a statement. “We are delighted both mother and baby are well.”
Randazzo’s attorney did not respond to an Eagle inquiry for this story.
But while specific details of the incident are disputed, legal aid organizations took to the streets on Monday saying Randazzo’s treatment highlights ongoing systemic issues in Brooklyn Criminal Court.
The Association of Legal Advocates and Attorneys, UAW 2325, the union that represents more than half the legal aid attorneys in the city, held a rally outside the courthouse on Monday demanding the city hold the involved agencies accountable. Protestors said Friday’s incident highlighted a long history of unsafe conditions in the Brooklyn courthouse, where they say detainees are regularly held for over 24 hours before seeing a judge.
Three people have died waiting for arraignments in the Brooklyn Criminal Courthouse since the beginning of 2025, ALAA leaders said.
Protesters on Monday were also joined by former City Comptroller Brad Lander and Queens Assemblymember Claire Valdez, who called Randazzo’s treatment “disgusting.” Queens City Councilmember Tiffany Cabán also condemned Randazzo’s treatment.
“This is a stark reminder of the cruelty of our criminal legal system and that the fight to decarcerate is also a fight for reproductive justice,” Cabán said on social media. “Incarceration is the deprivation of bodily autonomy and that is doubly true for those who are pregnant and people who need medical care on their own terms.”
Lisa Ohta, the president of ALAA, joined protestors calls for an investigation and called on Mayor Zohran Mamdani to immediately institute Emergency Medical Services personnel to all city courthouses. Ohta also called on Mamdani and the City Council to come to Brooklyn Criminal Court and view current conditions.
“Multiple systems are failing to ensure that our clients are treated with humanity. Without systemic change, these violations will continue and more New Yorkers will suffer or die,” Ohta said in a statement. “We invite the mayor and the City Council to visit Brooklyn Criminal Court and to see firsthand the unsafe and shameful conditions working class New Yorkers are subjected to every day.”
The mayor’s office did not respond to an Eagle inquiry for this story by time of publication.
