Longer Visits by Surrogate Mother Barred

A judge today denied increased visitation rights for surrogate mother Mary Beth Whitehead, but the woman angrily vowed the baby “will be home” and said she would never surrender the child.

Judge Harvey Sorkow ruled there was no reason to increase the two-hour visitation sessions Whitehead now has with the child known as Baby M.

Whitehead, who conceived the child by artificial insemination, is disputing custody with the natural father, William Stern of Tenafly, N.J.

“In the long run, my child will be home,” Whitehead said later. “No one can take her away from me. I don’t care what they do, I won’t surrender my child. She’s mine, I want to keep her.”

Disruption Predicted

Edward O’Donnell, representing Stern and his wife, Elizabeth, said increasing Whitehead’s time with the baby would be disruptive, adding, “A separation from the Sterns may reduce the child’s sense of security.”

“The child is currently healthy, well adjusted and not suffering from a lack of well-being as a result of lack of contact with Mrs. Whitehead,” O’Donnell said. He also said that allowing Whitehead to take the baby home might prompt her to flee.

The judge agreed with O’Donnell and ruled the two hours of visitation twice a week is “a status quo that should remain.”

The judge awarded temporary custody of Baby M to the Sterns in October, pending the outcome of the trial. The Sterns filed suit against Whitehead in May in an attempt to enforce the surrogate motherhood contract Whitehead signed, agreeing for $10,000 to bear a child who would be adopted by Elizabeth Stern and her husband.

The case is believed to be the first court test of a surrogate mother contract. Whitehead has also filed a federal suit against the New York Infertility Center.