Baby M Secure With Him, Her Father Testifies

Baby M is happy and secure with her father and his wife and shows no more attachment to the surrogate mother who refused to surrender her than she does to her baby sitter, the toddler’s father testified today.

William Stern, testifying at a court hearing over visitation rights for surrogate mother Mary Beth Whitehead-Gould, said he believes that his daughter should not be allowed to see Whitehead-Gould for several years.

Whitehead-Gould, who agreed to bear the child under a $10,000 contract with Stern, is currently allowed to see the child once a week for two hours under supervision.

The visitation fight is the final legal phase of the court battle involving Baby M, now Melissa Stern, who turned 2 on Sunday. The court hearing was ordered in a landmark ruling by the New Jersey Supreme Court overturning surrogacy for pay.

Like a Young Sapling

The two sides in the dispute strongly disagree over what would be in the best interests of the girl, with the key issue centering on whether continued contact with Whitehead-Gould would be harmful or healthy.

The child, conceived by artificial insemination using Stern’s sperm, lives with Stern and his wife, Elizabeth, in their Tenafly home.

Stern likened Melissa to a young sapling that has to put down its roots.

“If anything is done to interrupt her putting down those roots, I’m afraid Melissa does not have much of a future,” he said during half an hour of testimony.