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Justice Kagan denies emergency appeal request from surrogate McKenna West
Justice Elena Kagan has denied the emergency appeal request from surrogate McKenna West regarding a California court ruling over who is legally recognized as a medically fragile baby boy's parents.
Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan has denied an emergency appeal request from surrogate McKenna West regarding a California court ruling which stated that West has no legal or physical claim to the baby she carried.
After the baby boy was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, West refused the abortion the genetic parents demanded. West chose to relocate to Texas, where doctors at a certain hospital had a 100% success rate in the first of three specialized surgeries the baby required to survive.
When the genetic parents refused to commit to providing the baby boy with life-saving care, West sought custody of him.
Kagan said the Supreme Court will not intervene, leaving the California court ruling in place that West has no legal or physical claim to the baby she carried and birthed.
Supreme Court Justice Kagan, the justice who oversees emergency filings in California, said on Tuesday that she would not intervene in a case regarding West's custody of the baby she carried and protected from abortion as a surrogate.
Earlier this month, West filed an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court after a Los Angeles Superior Court ruled that West has no physical or legal claim to the baby, referred to as "Gabriel" by West prior to his birth and named "Rumi" by his genetic parents.
West asked the Supreme Court to block that ruling out of concern that the baby's genetic parents, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed, would remove the baby from Texas and fail to provide him with life-saving care in their home state of California.
West's attorney, Lincoln Davis Wilson of First and Fourteenth, called out the behavior of the baby's genetic parents throughout the situation:
“While disappointed at the Supreme Court’s ruling, McKenna takes great comfort in how these legal proceedings have prompted the contracting parents to say they are committed to provide the baby with the lifesaving care he needs. That’s what McKenna has been fighting for from day one.
Still, the contracting parents have acted duplicitously. They claim McKenna has been on a ‘publicity tour,’ but she hasn’t said anything publicly about this case in many weeks.
Meanwhile, just a few days ago, they provided the media with exclusive photos of the baby from his hospital bed while issuing a statement of their own.
And after faulting McKenna for receiving donations, they are now soliciting them."
He continued (emphasis added):
"Most egregiously, the contracting parents pose in their legal papers as the sole defenders of the baby’s life. Nothing could be further from the truth.
They demanded that McKenna abort the baby as soon as they learned of his medical condition.
They refused to commit to his lifesaving care until a court order, entered over their objection, forced their hand.
And even now after his birth, they remain under a court order to continue providing that care. Every life-saving decision has been made for them, not by them."
Also this month, the Texas Supreme Court denied West's request for the baby to remain in Texas for his ongoing healthcare. It noted that the baby's doctor indicated an "ICU-to-ICU transfer" is in the "child's best interest."
However, the court upheld the order that "stabilizing and life-sustaining care" must be provided to the baby and that no one is allowed to delay his necessary care.
West agreed to act as a surrogate for the couple, but at 20 weeks learned the baby had hypoplastic left heart syndrome, which is a serious but treatable condition.
Gilkar and Ahmed requested an abortion, but West ultimately refused. She went to Texas to give birth knowing that doctors in Dallas had a high success rate with the first of the three heart surgeries the baby would need.
She asked the genetic parents to commit to providing the baby with the care he would need, and when they didn't, she began her fight for custody to ensure that he received care.
Now, Gilkar and Ahmed are suing West for $100,000 along with attorney's fees and additional damages. The custody fight appears to have ended, but that lawsuit remains ongoing.
“Through this entire saga," said Wilson, "McKenna’s focus hasn’t wavered: to protect the life of the baby she carried.”
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Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
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·Justice Kagan denies emergency appeal request from surrogate McKenna West
Justice Elena Kagan has denied the emergency appeal request from surrogate McKenna West regarding a California court ruling over who is legally recognized as a medically fragile baby boy's parents.
Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan has denied an emergency appeal request from surrogate McKenna West regarding a California court ruling which stated that West has no legal or physical claim to the baby she carried.
After the baby boy was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, West refused the abortion the genetic parents demanded. West chose to relocate to Texas, where doctors at a certain hospital had a 100% success rate in the first of three specialized surgeries the baby required to survive.
When the genetic parents refused to commit to providing the baby boy with life-saving care, West sought custody of him.
Kagan said the Supreme Court will not intervene, leaving the California court ruling in place that West has no legal or physical claim to the baby she carried and birthed.
Supreme Court Justice Kagan, the justice who oversees emergency filings in California, said on Tuesday that she would not intervene in a case regarding West's custody of the baby she carried and protected from abortion as a surrogate.
Earlier this month, West filed an emergency appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court after a Los Angeles Superior Court ruled that West has no physical or legal claim to the baby, referred to as "Gabriel" by West prior to his birth and named "Rumi" by his genetic parents.
West asked the Supreme Court to block that ruling out of concern that the baby's genetic parents, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed, would remove the baby from Texas and fail to provide him with life-saving care in their home state of California.
West's attorney, Lincoln Davis Wilson of First and Fourteenth, called out the behavior of the baby's genetic parents throughout the situation:
“While disappointed at the Supreme Court’s ruling, McKenna takes great comfort in how these legal proceedings have prompted the contracting parents to say they are committed to provide the baby with the lifesaving care he needs. That’s what McKenna has been fighting for from day one.
Still, the contracting parents have acted duplicitously. They claim McKenna has been on a ‘publicity tour,’ but she hasn’t said anything publicly about this case in many weeks.
Meanwhile, just a few days ago, they provided the media with exclusive photos of the baby from his hospital bed while issuing a statement of their own.
And after faulting McKenna for receiving donations, they are now soliciting them."
He continued (emphasis added):
"Most egregiously, the contracting parents pose in their legal papers as the sole defenders of the baby’s life. Nothing could be further from the truth.
They demanded that McKenna abort the baby as soon as they learned of his medical condition.
They refused to commit to his lifesaving care until a court order, entered over their objection, forced their hand.
And even now after his birth, they remain under a court order to continue providing that care. Every life-saving decision has been made for them, not by them."
Also this month, the Texas Supreme Court denied West's request for the baby to remain in Texas for his ongoing healthcare. It noted that the baby's doctor indicated an "ICU-to-ICU transfer" is in the "child's best interest."
However, the court upheld the order that "stabilizing and life-sustaining care" must be provided to the baby and that no one is allowed to delay his necessary care.
West agreed to act as a surrogate for the couple, but at 20 weeks learned the baby had hypoplastic left heart syndrome, which is a serious but treatable condition.
Gilkar and Ahmed requested an abortion, but West ultimately refused. She went to Texas to give birth knowing that doctors in Dallas had a high success rate with the first of the three heart surgeries the baby would need.
She asked the genetic parents to commit to providing the baby with the care he would need, and when they didn't, she began her fight for custody to ensure that he received care.
Now, Gilkar and Ahmed are suing West for $100,000 along with attorney's fees and additional damages. The custody fight appears to have ended, but that lawsuit remains ongoing.
“Through this entire saga," said Wilson, "McKenna’s focus hasn’t wavered: to protect the life of the baby she carried.”
Live Action News is pro-life news and commentary from a pro-life perspective.
Our work is possible because of our donors. Please consider giving to further our work of changing hearts and minds on issues of life and human dignity.
Contact editor@liveaction.org for questions, corrections, or if you are seeking permission to reprint any Live Action News content.
Guest Articles: To submit a guest article to Live Action News, email editor@liveaction.org with an attached Word document of 800-1000 words. Please also attach any photos relevant to your submission if applicable. If your submission is accepted for publication, you will be notified within three weeks. Guest articles are not compensated (see our Open License Agreement). Thank you for your interest in Live Action News!
Bridget Sielicki
·Issues
Bridget Sielicki
·Issues
Nancy Flanders
·Issues
Anne Marie Williams, RN, BSN
·Issues
Cassy Cooke
·Issues
Sheena Rodriguez
·Human Interest
Nancy Flanders
·Analysis
Nancy Flanders
·Politics
Nancy Flanders
·Politics
Nancy Flanders
·Issues
Nancy Flanders
·