Months after Kentucky lawmakers passed a bill making it illegal to camp in public spaces in Kentucky, a Louisville police officer is making headlines.

According to Louisville Public Media, the officer cited a woman as she was going into labor.

Sylvia Goodman with Kentucky Public Radio joins our Laura Rogers to talk about it.

Sylvia, you broke this story this week about the woman in labor being cited for street camping.

And so let's first set this up for us, the details of the story.

I understand this happened back in September.

What can you tell us about what unfolded that day?

Sure.

So it was September Lieutenant Caleb Stewart, who heads the downtown area patrol for the Louisville Metro Police Department, was kind of making the rounds, going between overpasses and waking up homeless individuals and warning them about the street camping ban in Kentucky that was created by the SAFER Kentucky Act passed earlier this year in Kentucky.

And he essentially pulled up on the scene.

He gets out of his car and there's a woman standing next to a bare mattress, clearly pregnant, and she shouts over to him, I'm in labor.

I might be in labor.

Is that okay?

And then she goes on to explain to him that she's her water has broken, she's leaking fluid and she needs an ambulance.

She tells him that her partner, her husband, went to find a phone because she doesn't have one.

He calls an ambulance for her and then detains her and she asks why she's being detained.

He said it's because you've been street camping.

And as she waits for that ambulance, she's clearly extremely distressed.

He walks over to his car and writes her a citation for street camping and hands it to her for she gets in the ambulance.

So the lieutenant did call the ambulance for her.

When you reached out to local Metro Police department, what was their response to how the situation was handled?

Sure.

So essentially what Lmpd told me is that, you know, officers have to use their discretion in any given moment, and that is what this officer did, and that some people might not agree with that decision.

They also told me that he called the ambulance and that that should be praised.

He also they also told me that she has been previously reached by outreach workers twice before and that she has declined their services.

In a follow up with city officials, I was informed that those both of those outreach efforts happened before she the street camping ban went into effect in Kentucky.

They were, you know, in June and may I believe.

So, yeah, that's kind of what they were telling me about his actions and that they essentially fall within LAPD policy.

And you just filed this report yesterday.

But in that short time frame, have you or do you know of any response from local officials or the community feedback?

Sure.

Seen a lot of concern from the community.

I've spoken with Mayor Craig Greenburg, just went to a press conference with him today and asked him a question.

And basically, he's defended LAPD's actions and said that, you know, police are acting in complicated situations and saying there are other resources available for homeless individuals other than sleeping on the street and kind of applauded some of his own efforts to aid homeless people in the city.

Some other officials have expressed disappointment for example, Congress Congressman Morgan McGarvie told US Public Radio that, you know, you can't police your way out of homelessness and that he was disappointed in the situation.

So there has been some feedback and we'll see what kind of action we get from from lawmakers, if any.

All right.

Sylvia Goodman with Kentucky Public Radio, we appreciate your reporting.

Thank you for sharing your insight and perspective into this story.

Thank you.

I appreciate it.

According to Kentucky Public Radio, the woman at the center of this story has been assigned a public defender who says she and her baby are now in a shelter.

She has a court date for late January.