The US Supreme Court has declined to intervene in a custody dispute involving a surrogate who refused a request from the biological parents to terminate a pregnancy after doctors identified a severe heart defect.
Justice Elena Kagan rejected an emergency appeal from McKenna West, leaving in place an earlier California court ruling that recognised Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar as the legal parents of the child. West had asked the Supreme Court to halt that ruling while she pursued custody of the baby.
US Supreme Court Leaves Custody Ruling in Place
The dispute began after a 20-week pregnancy scan showed that the baby had hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a serious condition in which the left side of the heart cannot pump enough blood to the body. The parents subsequently asked West to have an abortion, according to court filings.
West refused and later travelled from Alaska to Texas, where abortion is banned after roughly six weeks of pregnancy. She gave birth to the boy in Dallas on 12 August. West calls the child Gabriel, while Ahmed and Gilkar named him Rumi.
The US Supreme Court decision means the previous California ruling recognising Ahmed and Gilkar as the child’s parents remains effective. Kagan, who handles emergency applications from California and other states in the region, did not provide a reason for rejecting West’s request.
West had argued that she should have a role in decisions about the child’s medical treatment. Her lawyers also said she feared losing access to information about his condition if the Supreme Court did not intervene.
McKenna West Raises Medical Care Concerns
West has said she refused the abortion request after learning that treatment options were available and deciding that she wanted to keep the baby. She also argued that the biological parents should not have custody because she feared they might not provide the medical care she believes the child requires.
The baby was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, which can require several operations and may result in lifelong complications. Soon after his birth, he underwent surgery after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton intervened and secured an emergency order requiring medical treatment.
A Texas court later ruled against West’s attempt to obtain custody. The Texas Supreme Court also declined to prevent Ahmed and Gilkar from taking Rumi to California for further treatment.
The biological parents have said they are committed to providing their son with lifesaving care. Their lawyer, Adam Wolf, said they had remained with the child in hospital and that doctors were providing critical treatment with their consent and direction.
Surrogacy Custody Dispute Continues
West’s legal team has maintained that her concerns about the baby’s care were central to her custody request. Her lawyers argued that intervention was necessary to allow her to remain informed about the child’s medical condition and protect what she believes are his interests.
The case has involved courts in both California and Texas, as well as the US Supreme Court. West’s appeal to Kagan represented her latest attempt to challenge the California ruling that granted parental rights to Ahmed and Gilkar.
The dispute has also drawn attention because of the competing names used for the child and disagreements over medical decisions following the diagnosis. The California couple previously told a court that the baby was their child and described him as the love of their lives.
West’s lawyers had also suggested in their Supreme Court filing that the California couple could place the child in hospice care. The couple’s legal team disputed West’s concerns and said they were committed to continuing the medical treatment required for their son.
With Kagan declining to intervene, the existing California custody ruling remains in effect while the wider legal dispute continues. The case has become a high-profile conflict involving surrogacy, parental rights, abortion and medical care for a seriously ill child.