Natalia Harrell of Florida, who has been detained at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center since July 2022, seeks freedom since her unborn child has not been charged with any crime, therefore, is “held unlawfully.”
Harrel was accused of murder after allegedly opening fire during an argument inside a packed Uber. She was held without bond for second-degree murder in the July 23 shooting death of Gladys Yvette Borcela.
Natalia Opened Fire
The incident was caught on video and showed several people inside a ride-share vehicle and Harrell allegedly opened fire while engaged in an argument.
Harrell’s attorney, William M. Norris, is arguing his client’s unborn child and Harrell should be immediately released from jail because the fetus “has not been charged with a criminal offense.”
A petition for habeas corpus was filed against the Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation Department and its director.
As of Thursday’s habeas corpus filing, Natalia was eight months pregnant. But Harrell has not been receiving adequate prenatal care or nutrition and has not been examined by an outside doctor since October, her attorney wrote.
Norris further argued that Harrell and her unborn child are being held “in a cell block or pod where violent criminals are housed with” them, including inmates who are “housed in the pod because they have been disciplined or under investigation for fighting or committing crimes or violation of the prison rules.”
“UNBORN CHILD’S constitutionally protected due process rights have been clearly violated,” the filing states.
Criminal Defense Attorney
Marc Shiner, a longtime Florida-based criminal defense attorney, told Fox News Digital that what the habeas corpus proceeding was saying is that “You’re holding my client illegally.”
He described how Florida and federal law prescribe that unborn fetuses should be recognized as legal victims when impacted in the commission of several different types of crimes, even before a trial.
“We do recognize, in many situations, unborn fetuses as a victim,” Shiner said. “So, if they’re a victim for criminal purposes, why are they not a criminal for penalty purposes, for penal purposes, when locking up the mother who’s not even found guilty? She’s presumed innocent.”
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