A birth certificate battle is being waged in an Oklahoma County Court between a lesbian couple and a sperm donor. The three individuals are at an impasse about the fate of their baby boy, who is two and a half years old now.
The boy's mothers, Rebekah Wilson and Kris Williams, are well-known in Oklahoma City, with the couple featured in Metro Family Magazine last year. The two got married in 2019 and had a son later that year.
Rebekah was the one who carried the child, who was conceived through artificial insemination with the help of a sperm donor. Both Wilson and Williams were listed on the birth certificate of the baby. The sperm donor allegedly signed a donor's contract to relinquish all his parental claims to the boy.
Same-sex marriage is legal in Oklahoma
Williams was the one who cut the umbilical cord of the baby. The couple decided to name their son for a beloved family member on Kris' side of the family. Williams said she thought it was a dream come true when her baby arrived, calling the entire experience special. Same-sex marriage is legal In Oklahoma, meaning Kris and Rebekah have the same rights as every married couple in the United States.
The fairy tale marriage soon crumbled, though, with the union falling apart late last year. Wilson petitioned the court after the separation to have her estranged wife removed from the baby's birth certificate.
Oklahoma County District Court Judge Lynne McGuire has issued a ruling regarding Wilson's petition, saying that Kris Williams, the non-gestational parent, should be removed from the birth certificate because she failed to adopt her son after the birth. She ruled that Kris failed to pursue a legal remedy to establish parental rights, according to Newsweek.
Williams blasted the judge's ruling, saying, "What I really want people to understand is that our families are vulnerable in the state of Oklahoma." Robyn Hopkins, Williams' attorney, believes the said practice is discriminatory against same-sex couples. Hopkins said that she thinks same-sex parents are being marginalized in this case and not being treated fairly.
Williams and Hopkins blast the judge's ruling
Hopkins issued a statement about the case, saying, "It's pretty simple. That's black and white, and so I'm not sure why we are getting caught up in the gray." The gray term refers to an ugly divorce that is making its way through the district court.
Hopkins was puzzled by the court's ruling, telling KFOR, "It's not a question about what the divorce is. This isn't about the divorce case at all. We're not talking about assets. We're not talking about marital property, separate property. We're talking about the custody of a child that was born of that marriage."
There is a new twist in the case, which emerged on Tuesday at 10 p.m. with the sperm donor asking for parental rights. The man who did not meet the baby in person until the toddler was 18-months-old is now petitioning the court for him to be recognized as the legal father.
