--- description: Andrea Circle Bear, 30, who was serving a 26-month prison sentence, died of COVID-19 weeks after giving birth while on a ventilator title: Federal Inmate Dies of Coronavirus After Giving Birth While on Ventilator image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [south dakota](/tag/south-dakota/) ## south dakota Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Federal Inmate Dies of Coronavirus After Giving Birth While on Ventilator by [Mahita Gajanan](/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Apr 29, 2020 2:52 PM CUT by [Mahita Gajanan](/author/mahita-gajanan/) ## Mahita Gajanan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gajanan is an editor at TIME. Apr 29, 2020 2:52 PM CUT A 30-year-old woman who was serving a 26-month prison sentence on a drug charge died of COVID-19 on April 28, weeks after giving birth while on a ventilator, the U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) said. Andrea Circle Bear was transported to a federal medical center in Fort Worth, Texas from a jail in South Dakota in late March. The BOP did not immediately comment on why Circle Bear was transported across multiple state lines; as of mid-March, the movement of inmates was [suspended](https://www.bop.gov/resources/news/20200313%5Fcovid-19.jsp "undefined") for at least 30 days, with exceptions for medical treatment. Following evaluations at the medical center, Circle Bear was twice taken to a local hospital “due to potential concerns regarding her pregnancy,” according to a BOP [statement](https://www.bop.gov/resources/news/pdfs/20200428%5Fpress%5Frelease%5Fcrw.pdf "undefined"). Circle Bear was convicted for maintaining a drug-related business on the Cheyenne River Sioux Indian Reservation, according to [the U.S. Department of Justice](https://www.justice.gov/usao-sd/pr/eagle-butte-woman-sentenced-maintaining-drug-involved-premises "undefined"), and sentenced in January. Her case was investigated by tribal law enforcement. Circle Bear was evaluated at the hospital and placed on a ventilator on March 31\. The next day, she gave birth via cesarean section, the Bureau of Prisons said. On April 4, she was confirmed positive for COVID-19\. According to the Bureau of Prisons, Circle Bear had a pre-existing medical condition that put her at a higher risk for contracting severe disease from COVID-19\. (Federal officials did not specify Circle Bear’s exact medical condition.) The newborn baby was placed with Circle Bear’s family in South Dakota, a relative [told](https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/04/29/pregnant-inmate-death-coronavirus/ "undefined") The Washington _Post_. Circle Bear appears to be the first woman to die from the coronavirus while in custody, according to the Bureau of Prisons, which has compiled a list of 30 inmates who have died due to COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the U.S. jail and prison system particularly hard, and health experts and advocates for criminal justice reform have noted that people held in custody are at a [higher risk](https://time.com/5816332/rikers-island-inmate-dies-coronavirus/ "undefined") for getting the coronavirus due to living in close quarters and having inadequate access to soap and water. **Read more:** [_We Must Act Now to Protect America’s Most Vulnerable from Coronavirus_](https://time.com/5812616/protect-americas-vulnerable-coronavirus/ "undefined") Reform advocates have called for inmates to be released from prisons across the country, amid shifting [guidance](https://www.bop.gov/coronavirus/faq.jsp "undefined") from federal authorities on who qualifies for release for home confinement. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5829082/female-inmate-covid-19-birth-ventilator/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5829082/female-inmate-covid-19-birth-ventilator/"},"headline":"Federal Inmate Dies of Coronavirus After Giving Birth While on Ventilator","datePublished":"2020-04-29T14:52:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-24T08:40:49.999Z","description":"Andrea Circle Bear appears to be the first woman to die from the coronavirus while in federal custody","url":"https://time.com/5829082/female-inmate-covid-19-birth-ventilator/","keywords":["south dakota","Brief","wire","COVID-19","News Desk"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Mahita Gajanan","jobTitle":"Gajanan is an editor at TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/mahita-gajanan/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/south-dakota/","name":"south dakota"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5829082/female-inmate-covid-19-birth-ventilator/","name":"Federal Inmate Dies of Coronavirus After Giving Birth While on Ventilator"}}]}] ```