A Dallas judge has put off a custody ruling in the case of a baby born to a surrogate with a rare heart defect, keeping a temporary restraining order in place for another two weeks while the dispute moves forward.
Tuesday’s hearing offered the clearest public view so far of a closely watched legal battle at the intersection of surrogacy, parental rights and abortion. Anti-abortion organizations and Republican officials have thrown their support behind McKenna West, an Alaska nurse who traveled to Texas and gave birth on Aug. 12 in a state with a near-total abortion ban.
Parents say baby is wanted and loved
The baby’s intended parents, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed, say their newborn son is deeply loved and wanted, and they reject any suggestion otherwise as untrue.
AP Photo/LM Otero
The surrogate, McKenna West, gave birth to the child in Dallas two weeks ago after intentionally relocating to Texas, she has said, in an effort to prevent a requested abortion.
West, who lives in Alaska, was around 20 weeks pregnant when doctors diagnosed the fetus with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a rare and severe congenital heart condition in which the left side of the heart does not fully develop, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office said.
Paxton’s office had intervened in the case and secured a court order requiring medical care for the newborn. The court also issued a restraining order stating that Ahmed and Gilkar — not West — have authority over the baby’s medical decisions.
Children born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome generally require three surgeries, with the first typically performed within two weeks of birth, according to the Cleveland Clinic. A lawyer for Gilkar and Ahmed said last week that the baby had undergone the first procedure in that series.
The second surgery is usually done when a child is 4 to 6 months old, and the third takes place between 18 months and 5 years of age. The Cleveland Clinic describes hypoplastic left heart syndrome as rare and complex, with the potential for lifelong complications.
Emotional court testimony
Tuesday’s court hearing included emotional testimony from Gilkar, who said she and her husband are taking every medical step possible to save the baby.
During testimony, Gilkar said that surrogacy was not her first choice, but her only option.
“We went through an agency and they matched us with McKenna about a year ago,” Gilkar said in court.
She also testified that West never told her or Ahmed that she was traveling to Texas and withdrew access to their child’s medical records. She described West as “mentally unstable.”
AP Photo/LM Otero
“She’s not right. Making us run from doctor to doctor,” Gilkar said.
West admitted in court to withholding medical records.
Gilkar also testified that the baby is “the most beautiful person I have ever seen. He’s the love of our lives. He’s suffering a lot.”
Gilkar confirmed that she and her husband requested to terminate the surrogate pregnancy back in May. West said on Tuesday that she wanted custody of the child but is now open to the idea of dropping any custody claims — if the couple agrees to the baby’s lifesaving care.
“Denying lifesaving care is not true,” Gilkar said in court. “We are devastated … We’ve never wanted anything more than those babies.”
Meanwhile, the baby, less than 2 weeks old, remains in critical care. Gilkar told the court that the baby had no blood flow to the left side of his heart, and since surgery, he has gasped for air, choked on tubes and needed a blood transfusion.
