Surrogate Refuses Abortion, Wins First Court Battle
A Texas court issued an emergency order protecting an unborn baby from abortion after his surrogate mother refused the biological parents' demand to terminate the pregnancy due to a treatable heart defect.
McKenna West, a nurse from Alaska and mother of two, is expected to give birth on September 2nd to a baby boy she has named Gabriel, according to Chris Bradford writing in New York Post. The child has been diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), a serious but treatable congenital heart defect that requires immediate surgical intervention after birth.
The biological parents, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed of California, have demanded that West terminate the pregnancy following the diagnosis. However, West refused and relocated to Texas, where state law recognizes her as the legal birth mother in surrogacy cases.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton intervened by filing a petition seeking court protection for the child and mandating that he receive medical care upon delivery. A Dallas County court granted the emergency petition on Tuesday.
The court order explicitly states that upon Gabriel’s birth, life-sustaining medical care must be provided and may not be withheld, obstructed, or delayed. It further prohibits anyone from removing the child from the hospital or from Texas without additional court authorization.
Attorney General Defends Right to Life
Following the ruling, Paxton praised the court’s swift action. He emphasized that his office deployed all available legal resources to protect the unborn child and vowed to continue fighting for Gabriel’s wellbeing and right to medical treatment.
Lawyers representing the biological parents have not issued any public statement regarding the court’s decision.
Medical Prognosis and Treatment Options
Children born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome require surgical intervention almost immediately after birth to survive beyond the first week of life. Medical data from NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital indicates that approximately 75% of babies who undergo the necessary surgery survive to age five, while those reaching their first birthday have a 90% survival rate to age 18.
The diagnosis came unexpectedly during a routine ultrasound at 20 weeks gestation in April. West recounted that the examining physician identified severely abnormal blood flow through the left side of the baby’s heart and referred her to a maternal-fetal medicine specialist. Prior to that appointment, all genetic testing had returned normal results and there had been no indication of any health concerns.
Contractual Dispute Fuels Legal Battle
The surrogacy contract between West and the biological parents reportedly contained a clause permitting termination in cases of fetal “anomaly” discovered during pregnancy. Upon learning of the heart condition, West said she became convinced the biological parents would choose abortion.
West, a single mother, declined to undergo an abortion in Alaska and is now being sued by Gilkar and Ahmed, who are demanding she terminate the pregnancy in their home state of California. West has indicated she would only travel to California if the biological parents agree to permit Gabriel to receive medical treatment after birth.
The biological parents are scheduled to appear in Dallas County court on August 25th for further proceedings in the case.
With information from New York Post
