Father or sperm donor? Court says donor
8:01 p.m. Friday, October 26, 2007
A local man is looking to fight a court decision denying him custody of children created with his sperm. Friday the Kansas Supreme Court ruled Daryl Hendrix does not have parental rights over a set of twins born in 2005. It upheld a Kansas Law that says a sperm donor needs a written agreement with the mother to be considered a parent.
"I asked her, I said, 'Do we need an attorney or do we need a written anything written,' " Hendrix said remembering the conversation he had with Samantha Harrington, the twins' mother. "She said, 'I am an attorney. We've been friends for ten years. You have nothing to worry about'."
Hendrix said he had an oral agreement with Harrington to share custody of the children. For much of her pregnancy, Hendrix says they talked about who would have the kids on holidays. But they never put it in writing and right before the twins were born, he says their relationship went sour.
"I thought, 'here's my chance to be a father'," Hendrix said. "Here's this woman who I thought was responsible and trustworthy and God did I find out wrong."
For almost two-and-a-half years, this case has been in and out of court. The seven-justice state supreme court decided the matter with a 4 to 2 vote. It is being called a "first of its kind" decision across the nation. Hendrix says he is simply baffled by it.
These past two years, he has been making his case with local and national media outlets. He found out about the court's decision around 10 a.m. and by 2 p.m., he says he had done six interviews. He says the "written statement" law is confusing and vague, so he plans to petition the Kansas State Legislature to change the law.
"In her state petition, child in need of care, she calls me the father 57 times and signed it under oath," Hendrix said. "What constitutes a written agreement?"
For now, he says the support he's received from the community is helping him stay strong. Through out this entire ordeal, Hendrix said he has not received a single piece of hate mail. And he plans to take the case much further than the highest court in Kansas
"It's not over," he said, "by any means."
The children are almost 2 and a half years old now.
The court ruled by a 4-to-2 margin.
Sperm donor case background
- Topeka man devastated by sperm case decision (Feb. 2, 2007)
- Battle brewing over sperm donor rights (Dec. 4, 2006)
- Sperm donor fights for parental rights (Nov. 28, 2006)
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