Key facts
- A surrogate, McKenna West, is seeking US Supreme Court intervention in a custody dispute over a baby born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome.
- West refused an abortion request from the intended parents, Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar, after a 20-week scan revealed the fetus's severe heart defect.
- The baby was born last month in Texas, where West had traveled to avoid abortion restrictions.
- Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton secured an order for the child to receive medical care in Texas.
- West argues the biological parents should not have custody due to concerns they would not provide necessary medical care.
- A California court previously granted parental rights to Ahmed and Gilkar.
McKenna West, a surrogate who refused an abortion request from the intended parents, has asked the US Supreme Court to intervene in a custody dispute over their child, who was born with a severe heart defect. West filed an emergency appeal seeking to halt a previous ruling that granted parental rights to the California couple, Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar.
Ahmed and Gilkar had requested West abort the pregnancy after a 20-week scan indicated the fetus had hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a condition where the left side of the heart cannot pump enough blood to the body. Instead, West traveled to Texas, where abortion is largely illegal, and gave birth to the child last month. The child has since undergone surgery.
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton intervened in the case, securing an emergency court order for the child to receive medical care in the state. West has argued that the biological parents should not have custody, expressing concern they would not provide the necessary medical care due to their initial request for an abortion. She stated she denied the abortion request because she wanted to keep "this precious baby" after learning of treatment options.
In a previous court hearing, Gilkar referred to the baby, named Rumi, as "our child" and "the love of our lives," according to the Associated Press. They stated West traveled to Texas without informing them and blocked their access to medical information. A California court had previously granted parental rights to Ahmed and Gilkar, while a Texas court issued a restraining order preventing West from seeing the baby. An attorney for the couple recently stated the child was in critical condition and experiencing potential complications.