A surrogate mother has filed an emergency appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court to block the biological parents of a newborn from moving the child out of Texas before a critical hearing.
McKenna West, 28, asked the court on Monday for an immediate administrative stay to prevent the infant, identified as Gabriel by West and Rumi by his parents, from being removed from a Dallas hospital. The baby, born with a serious heart defect called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS), is currently receiving lifesaving care in Texas. West’s legal team argued in a supplemental brief that the child could be moved as early as September 17, 2026, though her filing suggested the timeline may be accelerating.
The surrogate’s appeal follows a California court order recognizing Omar Ahmed and Nausheen Gilkar as the infant’s legal parents, which would allow them to take the child to their home in Los Angeles. West, who resides in Alaska, had previously refused the parents’ request to terminate the pregnancy after the heart defect diagnosis. She traveled to Texas, a state with restrictive abortion laws, to give birth.
A guardian ad litem appointed to represent the baby’s interests filed an emergency motion on Monday to modify a prior Texas court order requiring the parents to provide lifesaving care. The motion seeks to delay the child’s removal from the hospital pending further review. West’s legal team stated that a hearing on the guardian’s motion is scheduled for Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. EDT in Texas.
West’s attorneys, from the Alliance Defending Freedom and First & Fourteenth PLLC, argued in their filings that the California courts violated federal due process by treating her jurisdictional defense as consent. They also warned that without a stay, the baby could be transferred to California for hospice care while West remains unable to participate in medical decisions. The commissioning parents, however, maintain that California has jurisdiction under the surrogacy agreement and that they are the child’s legal parents.
The legal dispute centers on jurisdictional authority and parental rights, with West asserting her role in the child’s birth and care as grounds for continued involvement. The biological parents, represented in court filings, have sought to finalize their parental rights and relocate the infant. The case raises questions about the enforceability of surrogacy agreements and the rights of surrogates in medical decision-making for newborns with serious health conditions.