Prison Guard Fired For Taking In Inmate’s Baby Has No Regrets: ‘It Was The Right Thing To Do’

The Louisiana prison guard who lost her job after deciding to take in an inmate’s baby said she has no regrets for her good deed.

Roberta Bell was fired from the Louisiana Transition Center for Women in May after letting higher-ups know about her intention to care for an inmate’s baby while she completed her prison sentence, The Washington Post reports. Katie Bourgeois only had two months left on her sentence when she gave birth to her son Kayson the day after Bell’s firing.

Scared Child Protective Services would take her baby due to her incarceration at the privately-run educational and training corrections facility in Tallulah, Louisiana, where female inmates go ahead of their release.

But Bourgeois was close to delivering a baby she conceived prior to being sent to prison for using drugs while on parole.

“I wasn’t sure what to do or where to turn,” Bourgeois said.

But other inmates told her about Bell and how caring she was for others, figuring she might help the mother-to-be. Bell stayed true to her word despite how it violated company policy against staffers giving inmates their personal information.

“I knew it was the right thing to do,” Bell said.

“I knew that God wanted me to follow my heart, and I knew I couldn’t allow a baby to go to protective services when Katie really wanted that child,” she said.

While Bell, who also looks after her own grandchildren, knew taking in baby Kayson would be a conflict of interest at the job she had for four years, she stayed true to her promise and focused on how her decision would benefit the baby.

“I was aware it would be seen as a conflict of interest, but I am a woman of my word,” Bell said. “I wanted to do the best thing for Katie and her child.”

When Bourgeois was released from prison earlier this month, Bell and baby Kayson were there to greet her. Now the trio live together as Bourgeois works to get back on her feet.

“She and Kayson are welcome to stay here for as long as they need to,” Bell said. “I’m excited for Katie and what the future holds for her.”