A woman is sentenced to prison for using meth while pregnant, resulting in her baby's being stillborn.

OKLAHOMA CITY -- A judge sentenced a woman to 15 years in prison Friday for delivering a stillborn baby after using methamphetamine during her pregnancy.

Medical and public health groups say her criminal prosecution sets a dangerous precedent and will discourage pregnant women with addictions from getting help.

Theresa Lee Hernandez, 31, pleaded guilty in September to second-degree murder.

Oklahoma County District Judge Virgil Black suspended an additional 10 years of her sentence and said he would consider a reduction in her prison time next November after she undergoes drug treatment.

Hernandez sobbed as the sentence was handed down.

Black followed the sentenc ing recommendation of District Attorney David Prater, who has been criticized by medical experts and public health and child-welfare advocacy groups.

They contend that there is no medical evidence that meth use causes stillbirth.

He said he felt compelled to prosecute Hernandez because evidence shows that she is responsible for the death of her child.

Hernandez has had five children, all of whom were taken by the state because of her criminal activity and continued drug use, as well as several miscarriages, Prater said.

"I have a great deal of sympathy for Ms. Hernandez, but I also believe she has to be held accountable for her actions," he said. "I just basically had to say, 'We believe that children are very important to us, even unborn children.'

"There is a time where the state has to say enough is enough."

Hernandez's attorney, James Rowen, said he fears that her sentencing will result in fewer addicted pregnant women seeking help.

He said Hernandez has an IQ of 72 and has been in jail for more than three years awaiting adjudication of her sentence.

A friend-of-the-court brief filed in September and supported by more than 30 state and national groups and doz ens of medical experts and health professionals argued that shifting pregnancy loss from a medical arena to a criminal one "has devastating implications for maternal and fetal health."

Dr. Dana Stone, an Oklahoma City doctor and the state chairwoman for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, said no studies show a causal link between meth use and stillbirth.

"Nobody is winning with this type of prosecution," Stone said.

"We're holding a woman accountable for something that we can't even prove was the demise of her fetus.

"It's treating a medical issue as a criminal one."