A California couple’s surrogate who went to Texas amid escalating friction over the treatment of a congenital heart defect detected in the fetus she was carrying on their behalf has given birth, a day after a judge in Dallas ordered life-sustaining treatment for the newborn
The baby was receiving stabilizing care and was scheduled to undergo surgery shortly after he was born at a Texas hospital on Wednesday, a lawyer for the surrogate, McKenna West, told The Associated Press
The fetus was diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome at about 20 weeks during an ultrasound, a potentially fatal heart condition, West said during an interview with former Fox News host Megyn Kelly last month
West says the couple whose baby she was carrying wanted her to end the pregnancy after learning of the condition and consulting with doctors
Abortion is heavily restricted and not readily available in Texas
The case, hinged at the intersection of parental rights, surrogacy and abortion across three states, has drawn growing support from right-to-life activists and Republican officials — who have been referring to the child as Gabriel —since it first came to light in the spring, the New York Times reports, noting that West received funding from pro-life groups to travel to Texas from her home in Alaska to seek medical care for the unborn child
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On Tuesday, a Texas judge implemented an emergency order that the child receive life-sustaining care after the state Attorney General Ken Paxton intervened in support of West
“While the surrogate mother of baby Gabriel has traveled to Texas for protection and care for Gabriel, the intended parents have refused to agree that they will consent to the life-saving surgery for Gabriel after he is born,” Paxton said in a statement
The order prevents anyone from withholding or obstructing necessary treatment, or from removing, discharging, or transferring the baby, while the court considers the case
The court also mandated a restraining order against West, barring her from presenting herself as the baby’s parent, guardian or medical decision-maker to anyone. It also bans her from holding the child, the Associated Press reports
Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar, who are the child’s legal parents, chose not to call the child Gabriel, and instead named him Rumi, the U.S. news agency added
The couple have denied that they intended to refuse surgery once the child was born, multiple U.S media outlets report, including ABC News and The Associated Press, and were in Dallas with the newborn as he receives medical care, according to the couple’s lawyer, the AP noted
“As if the heartbreak of his condition were not enough, they are devastated to see their family tragedy transformed into political theatre by the Texas Attorney General’s office and McKenna West,” a lawyer for the couple, Lee Budner, said in a statement to the New York Times, adding that the parents “would place their baby’s health and well-being first, following the advice of the baby’s medical team.”
West is seeking custody of the child, the report said
During her interview with Kelly, West, a nurse with two children of her own, said she was against abortion and that she had signed a surrogacy agreement that stipulated the parents could opt to abort the pregnancy, but that she felt confident termination would not be “their first choice.”
West told Kelly that when the parents said they wanted to terminate, she felt “trapped” by the contract and like she had “no voice.”
“I knew in my soul, in my heart that I wanted to protect this little boy,” she said
California couple says surrogate broke their contract
West entered an agreement with the couple through Worldwide Surrogacy Specialists, LLC in August 2025. In court documents viewed by the Associated Press, the couple argues that West broke a surrogacy contract and that a California court determined she has no rights to legal or physical custody of the child
Global News has not independently reviewed those documents
West’s lawyers also allege the couple spent weeks pressuring West to seek an abortion after learning of the diagnosis. With legal support from the conservative Christian organization Alliance Defending Freedom, West petitioned a Dallas court to give her custody over the child two days before she gave birth
According to court documents in Alaska, the couple claimed West agreed with the decision to end the pregnancy after the diagnosis but then changed her mind and cut off contact
What is Hypoplastic left heart syndrome?
Hypoplastic left heart syndrome is a condition in which the left side of the heart prevents normal blood flow. If untreated, the condition causes severe symptoms such as breathing problems, a weak pulse and ashen or bluish skin
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the condition requires multiple complex and challenging surgeries. About 925 babies in the U.S. are born with HLHS each year, according to the CDC
Without treatment, children affected by the heart defect can die within days or weeks. Surgical repairs are not always curative, and children may need additional surgeries or heart transplants, the CDC says
— with files from The Associated Press
