A surrogate who defied the biological parents' wishes for an abortion is vowing to pursue a legal battle for parentage of the child born in the Dallas area, with her attorney asserting, "She is the mother."
Lincoln Wilson, representing surrogate McKenna West, stated that West intends to fight for legal custody of the baby, identified as "Gabriel," who was born on Wednesday. According to Wilson, Texas law recognizes the birth mother as the legal parent of a child born in the state.
The biological parents, Nausheen Gilkar and Omar Ahmed, who are based in California, currently have custody due to a court order that Wilson described as "void." The legal team plans to challenge this California order, potentially escalating the case to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Earlier this year, the biological parents requested West to terminate the pregnancy after the fetus was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a severe but treatable heart condition. The surrogacy contract included a clause permitting abortions in cases of "anomaly" during pregnancy.
Following the request for an abortion, West refused and relocated to Texas, where she would be legally recognized as the birth mother under state law. Wilson likened surrogacy contracts with forced abortion clauses to "hitman contracts," arguing that such clauses are unenforceable.
Under a temporary restraining order filed by Gilkar and Ahmed, West currently has no legal authority over the infant. The order reportedly prohibits her from making any decisions regarding the baby's care, including medical choices, and prevents her from claiming to be the parent. The biological parents have reportedly selected a different name for the child, while West named him Gabriel.
The baby is scheduled to undergo a series of three heart surgeries, beginning with the Norwood procedure, at a hospital with a reported 100% success rate for the operation. The legal dispute began in April after the fetal diagnosis at 20 weeks gestation. West has not been allowed to see or hold the baby due to the court order.