Bill Would Exempt Nursing Moms in Mich. from Jury Duty

OAK PARK, Mich. (WJBK) - Breastfeeding -- some mommies really believe it's best for baby and would dare you to beg to differ.

"I have a toddler. He's two years old, so I plan on tandem nursing," said Erin New of New Hudson, who's due in February. "I was actually called for jury duty when he was a young newborn."

"I would most likely try to get out of it," said one expectant mother. "I'd be thinking can my husband get off of work, for one thing, to watch the babies."

"I would probably try to get out of jury duty and stay home with my baby. I think it's more important," said another mom-to-be.

Meanwhile, New said nursing and reporting for jury duty was a full on nightmare.

"It was incredibly difficult. My husband had to stay home. I obviously had to pump enough milk because I didn't want to formula feed him at all," she explained. "They did not have a room for me in Oakland County that I could go and nurse comfortably, I suppose, or at least pump milk, and then I would have nowhere to store it, so I would have to store it out in my car."

So, when Erin New heard about a new bill that's being considered in the state Senate that would give breastfeeding moms a break from being a juror, she nearly jumped for joy.

"I think it's a great idea," she stated.

"I think that nursing mothers should be exempt from a lot of things, especially jury duty. Jury duty is usually inconvenient and you have to take off of work," said Joy Ricker, who is due in March. "If you're nursing, how would you go about feeding your baby unless you planned ahead. It's a stressful time anyway."

"I think it's real critical for the mother to be very close to their baby the first year. That's the nurturing part of it, so I feel they should stay home and not have to worry about that extra burden in their lives because they are taking care of babies," said Steve Moshluk, whose wife is expecting twins.

As it stands right now, a judge can make his or her own decision on whether a nursing mommy can be cleared from coming to court. However, if that changes, it's not too far fetched to think that some folks may say that's not fair.

"Some other people may not like it because then it may be their turn to be in jury duty and they can't get out of it," Steve Moshluk remarked.

"They're not raising my child. I tend to nurse and I know it's the best thing for my baby. That's what comes first, your babies. That's it," said New.

The women that spoke with FOX 2 said six months to a year of no jury duty would be fair for mommies and babies, too.