Baby With Heart Defect at Center of Surrogacy Dispute Handed to Biological Parents After Surrogate Fled to Texas

A surrogate who gave birth in Texas without the intended parents' consent has been stripped of authority over the child but vows to appeal to the Supreme Court.

A California surrogate named McKenna West traveled to Texas without the consent of the intended biological parents to give birth to a baby she had been carrying for them — setting off a legal battle that courts have now partially resolved. The baby, who was born with a severe heart defect, has been handed over to the biological parents following a custody ruling. According to the biological parents' attorney, West had initially agreed to terminate the pregnancy after the heart defect was diagnosed, but then fled to Texas — a state where abortion is largely illegal — broke contact with the intended parents, and gave birth there. A court subsequently ordered that West would have no authority over the child, including no say in the baby's medical decisions, effectively siding with the biological parents on the question of who controls the child's care. West's attorney, Lincoln Wilson, told the New York Post that they are prepared to fight the ruling all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, signaling the dispute is far from over. The case has drawn widespread attention as a high-profile test of surrogacy law, parental rights, and the intersection of reproductive rights with abortion restrictions across state lines. The biological parents' identities have not been publicly disclosed.

Why it matters

Surrogacy legal disputes are rare but consequential, and a case that reaches appellate courts — or potentially the Supreme Court — could shape how surrogacy contracts and parental rights are interpreted across state lines.

What's next

West's attorney says they plan to appeal the ruling, potentially all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Key facts

• Surrogate McKenna West traveled to Texas without the consent of the California couple whose baby she was carrying
• A court order strips West of all authority over the child, including medical decision-making
• West's attorney, Lincoln Wilson, told the New York Post they are prepared to take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court
• Both reports come from TMZ, which says it obtained the legal documents directly
• The intended parents are described as a California couple; their identities have not been publicly reported

Bias & framing notes

Both sources are from TMZ, a single outlet — there is no independent corroboration from other news organizations. TMZ does claim to have obtained the court documents directly, which lends some credibility to the order's details, but the surrogate's motivations and the full legal background remain thinly reported. The framing across both TMZ pieces is focused on the legal outcome against West, with limited representation of her side beyond the vow to appeal.

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